Posts Tagged Montego Bay
MoBay mayor puts Digicel on hold
Posted by ShopinJA in Mobile Tech on October 12th, 2009
St. James PC defers telecommunication giant’s application to build cell tower in West Green
BY MARK CUMMINGS Observer West senior reporter cummingsm@jamaicaobserver.com
MONTEGO BAY, St James - The St James Parish Council’s Physical Planning Committee has deferred Digicel’s application for permission to erect a 45-metre cellular tower in the middle-class community of West Green.
“The application went to the meeting (physical planning) last week and it was deferred to next month’s meeting because of some outstanding matters,” Charles Sinclair, the council’s chairman told the Observer West on Tuesday.
“… as such no approval has been given for Digicel’s application,” added Sinclair, who is also mayor of Montego Bay.
The telecommunications company hopes to construct the tower later this year, but it needs the approval of several state entities including the St James Parish Council and the National Environmental Planning Agency (NEPA) as a pre-requsite.
Last month Digicel, which had already received the nod of approval for the construction of the site from NEPA, called a meeting - in keeping with the parish council’s approval process-with members of the West Green Citizens Association to outline its plans.
However at that stormy meeting, which took place on September 6 at the Cannon Muffler Centre in the community, some 100 residents made it clear that they did not want the tower in their community for health reasons.
Subsequently, two weeks ago the association, through its president, Vilma Clarke, delivered a petition signed by some 270 community members to the Parish Council’s Secretary Manager, Winston Palmer as well as NEPA.
The petition, which was accompanied by a cover letter as well as a list of the first 76 residents who attended the September 6, meeting, urged the local authority not to approve Digicel’s application.
“We did not get to collect the signatures of everyone who came to the meeting because some came in late and the focus had changed.. there were no microphones, and people were complaining at times that they could not hear what the people from Digicel were saying,” Clarke told the Observer West.
On Tuesday, Sinclair told the Observer West that the physical planning committee has since written to NEPA advising the agency of the community’s stance against the construction of the tower.
Sinclair added that the committee is also awaiting the minutes of last month’s meeting between Digicel and the West Green Citizens Association.
But Clarke told the Observer West that her association was not able to take minutes at the meeting as it was plagued by audio problems.
“We couldn’t hear what was being said and there wasn’t much to record given the shouting. In any case nobody has asked me for any minutes and it wasn’t our meeting, we were called by Digicel so we did not come with equipment to take that sort of record,” she said.
In the meantime the communication process seems to have gone awry as Clarke has received a letter from Digicel referring to the community’s desire to have sidewalks repaired as part of the condition for allowing the tower in.
Mello FM goes islandwide
Posted by ShopinJA in Business News on September 10th, 2009
BY: HORACE HINES, Observer West reporter
Thursday, September 10, 2009
MONTEGO BAY, St James
The Montego Bay-based Mello FM radio station which has, since 2004 been transmitting in western parishes will have an islandwide reach next month, setting the stage for a more competitive radio market.
Mello FM, which operates from 63 Barnett Street, Montego Bay, now restricts coverage to St. James, Trelawny, Hanover, Westmoreland and sections of St. Ann and St. Elizabeth.
It will extend its coverage island-wide on frequencies 88.1 megahertz (MHz) from Catherine’s Peak in St. Andrew covering the parishes of Kingston, St. Andrew, St. Catherine, and sections of St. Thomas and St. Mary.
The radio station will also be transmitting on 88.3 from Huntley, Mancheste,r covering Manchester, Clarendon, Trelawny and St. Elizabeth.
Currently Mello FM covers western Jamaica on frequencies 96.1 and 88.1 MHz from Kempshot Peak, St. James and Birchs Hill, Hanover respectively. But, with the clustering of Mello FM’ frequencies on the 88 MHz band, listeners in St. James, Trelawny and sections of St. Ann who listened on 96.1 will now have to tune to their favourite programmes on 88.5, starting September 25 at 2:00 p.m.
According to a release, Mello FM is the radio station of choice for listeners in western Jamaica who crave its adult, contemporary and rhythm and blues music format.
Mello FM’s general manager, Al Robinson expressed confidence that the station will maintain its western focus, primarily serving the needs of its western audience, while broadcasting developments in the region to a national audience.
Artistes prepare for Reggae Sumfest
Posted by ShopinJA in Entertainment Buzz on July 17th, 2009
Friday, July 17, 2009
It is an interantional showcase. The world comes to Montego Bay each year to soak up the vibe of the city and enjoy the musical offerings, and this year is no different.
From July 19 - 25, Jamaica’s second city comes alive with the sounds of music at the 17th staging of Reggae Sumfest. The music festival dubbed ‘the greatest reggae show on earth’ is known around the world for providing patrons with the ultimate entertainment package, as people not only flock to Jamaica’s second city for the music, but also to see the fashions and sample other sumptuous delights available at the event.
The annual event not only brings some of the island’s top reggae and dancehall artistes to one stage, but also incorporates some of the biggest acts on the international circuit.
With only days to go before the staging of the event, some of the show’s headliners have been gearing up to deliver their best performances. Here’s what’s been happening with a few local artistes so far:
$40m to ease Congestion
Posted by ShopinJA in Breaking News on June 5th, 2009
MoBay to implement traffic management system | BY MARK CUMMINGS, Observer West senior reporter | Thursday, June 04, 2009
MONTEGO BAY, St James
The chronic traffic congestion which has been plaguing Montego Bay for quite sometime, should be eased soon, as the National Works Agency (NWA) will this month begin the implementation of a $40 million traffic management system in the resort city.
The chamber president argued that one of the major factors affecting Montego Bay's traffic flow is the matter of indiscipline drivers-particularly taxi and minibus operators
The state-of-the- art project which is being funded by the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), is expected to be completed by the end of August.
According to Janel Ricketts, the community relations officer for the western region, the system consists of a Traffic Management Centre (TMC), coordinated traffic signals and an Incident Management System (IMS).
“The TMC will be the site at which all the communication between traffic signals and cameras takes place. Specialists at the TMC will have the ability to monitor traffic operations along major corridors in real time and make signal changes in response to traffic demand,” she explained, adding that the traffic signal system consists of more than 20 traffic lights linked to the centre.
Ricketts pointed out that the IMS consists of Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras located at key intersections within the city centre. This, she argued, will allow the close monitoring of traffic conditions, and allow for the formulation of the appropriate responses.
