Williams pushes for expanded sewage, water infrastructure
Published:Friday | January 12, 2024 | 12:05 AMAinsworth Morris/Staff Reporter
With numerous high-rise buildings going up in Kingston and causing more pressure to be applied to the city’s sewage infrastructure, Mayor of Kingston Delroy Williams is batting for the authorities to expand the outdated wastewater management system.
For example, residents, businesses, a health centre and school in Harbour View suffered bitterly in recent months with sewage overflowing on their main thoroughfare, which they blamed on a new housing development in the area.
Other areas in Kingston, especially downtown, have also had issues with sewage overflow, which has sometimes occurred due to increases in population, caused by construction of new houses and apartments.
Asked about funding for the sewage project, Williams pointed to central government and the National Water Commission (NWC), which bills customers for sewage.
He said better sewage infrastructure is something the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) will be paying close attention to.
Williams stated that the KSAMC is not responsible for implementing sewage and waste management, but they “get a lot of blame for it”.
“The municipality doesn’t deal with sewage infrastructure. That’s a matter for the National Water Commission, so that’s a matter for the central government … and usually the central government discusses that and they at the NWC leadership will decide on that. But from our standpoint, these are projects that are essential to the smooth operation of the municipality and that would be aligned to the vision of transformation of the municipality,” Williams told The Gleaner.
“There are massive infrastructure projects that we believe are necessary as we go along this path. Sewage is one. There are issues of sewage infrastructure, sewage infrastructure repair, but in some cases replacement, that we have been speaking to central government with respect to. We have seen some action [and] investment in that and we continue that conversation for further investment in repair and replacement of sewage infrastructure [and] water infrastructure. It’s also something that’s important as we transform Kingston and transition Kingston into a destination city,” he said.
He said he was pleased that the Government is investing in sewage infrastructure and water infrastructural expansions.
When asked to pinpoint the first plan to get out of the way for 2024, he said it was the local government elections, and that they will continue the vision to transform and reposition Kingston into a destination and tourism city.
“We continue to soften the streetscape and to integrate our history within the experience. We are developing our city space in a manner that allows persons to experience our culture and interact with it and our history,” Williams said.
The streetscape projects have taken place in areas such as Mark Lane and Temple Lane.
He said the new focus is Church Street where work has already begun.