By Trudy Simpson, Staff Reporter 
Greene
A REVIEW OF the operations of the 18 KSAC-run markets and arcades is yet to be completed, more than a year after it was first suggested by Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation (KSAC) Councillors and officials.
This was confirmed on Monday by Town Clerk Errol Greene who said the review was taking a long time because various aspects had to be taken into consideration.
Among them were what was to become of those persons who made their livelihoods at low earning markets and where would those persons be located if these low performing markets were closed.
He said venues such as the Kingston Craft Market, the Micheal Manley, DC Tavares and Constant Spring markets were "the ones that give us the most problems".
A source at the KSAC said recently that the Corporation was looking to close the Constant Spring market because it was not "economically viable" in its current state. The Town Clerk said one idea was to use the venue as a transport centre.
Some vendors and users recently complained that the Constant Spring market had been without water for more than a month. The KSAC source said the problem was caused by extensive use of the water by residents living in nearby communities and the non-payment of stall rental fees by vendors.
The source said the revenue coming in was $2,000 to $3,000 per week and that could not cover the market's bills.
KSAC officials had agreed to the review during a Commercial Services' meeting last July.
The Mayor of Kingston, Marie Atkins, the Town Clerk, Councillors and other KSAC officials had agreed then that a review of all the operations of the KSAC's markets and arcades was needed to find ways to prevent loss of revenue which, they said, the KSAC could not afford.
The decision was made in mid-July, two weeks after the transfer of markets from Metropolitan Parks and Markets (MPM), now part of the National Solid Waste Management Authority, to the KSAC.
The cost-saving review was to have looked at areas covering the markets' sanitation, cleaning and security contracts, to salaries and utility bills, especially those paid to the National Water Commission (NWC).
KSAC officials said the services and bills mentioned represented almost 70 per cent of the total market expenditure each year.
In 2000, the 18 markets and arcades lost more than $1 million monthly, racking up an $18 million loss by the end of the year, The Gleaner was told.
