Adrian Frater, News Editor 
Sam Sharpe Square in Montego Bay.
WESTERN BUREAU:
ON SATURDAY May 1, 1981, Marlon Fraser was not among the thousands who gathered in Sam Sharpe Square to mark the historic declaration marking the birth of the western city.
Then a mere 14-months-old toddler, Fraser was at his Mt. Salem home playing with his toys, too young to appreciate the significance of the event which was unfolding less than 20 minutes away from his home.
However, in the 25 years since that day, the Herbert Morrison High School graduate, who is now an accomplished graphic artist, has had a chance to watch the city's transformation from a quiet seaside resort into a major economic, tourism and commercial hub.
"Much has changed since I was a child," said Fraser. "We now have new housing schemes in Cornwall Courts, Catherine Mount and Bogue. We now have the Montego Bay Revenue Centre, the Montego Bay Civic Centre, the Howard Cooke Highway, an expanded Sangster's Airport and a much bigger business district."
NEW DEVELOPMENTS
The new developments cited by Mr. Fraser were among those highlighted by Mayor Noel Donaldson when he spoke at the recent launch of the 'Montego Bay at 25 Celebrations'. While bemoaning the fact that the city continues to suffer from lack of tangible financial support from central government, the mayor said the city has made much progress since 1981.
"While we must continue to strive and struggle to attain those objectives which, if realised, will give meaning and worth to city status, we must at the same time recognise that notwithstanding the odds, we have indeed come a long way," said Mayor Donaldson, in lauding the development of the Montego Bay Free Zone, the Howard Cooke Highway and the airport expansion.
Like Mr. Fraser and Mayor Donaldson, Dwynett Powell-Hamilton, a customer service representative at Sangster's Book Store, also testified to witnessing much growth in the 25 years of her life, which spans the period of Montego Bay's city status.
Mrs. Powell-Hamilton, resides in Flankers. Flankers, a community with a chequered history, borders the Sangster Airport and sits squarely inside the much-vaunted tourism belt. Although Flankers gained its reputation mainly from violent clashes with the police and the killing of a tourist who had accidentally overturned a soup pot, the area, now influenced by peace management efforts, is also home to many aspiring professional persons.
Mrs. Powell-Hamilton has witnessed significant expansion in the city's tourism, telecommunications and banking sector.
"I have seen the construction of the Ritz-Carlton and Sea Castles among other new hotels," she said. "I have also seen the creation of attractions such as the Coral Cliff Gaming Lounge, Margaritaville and the Aquasol Theme Park."
EXPANSION OF
TELEPHONE SERVICE
In terms of telecommunications, she spoke to the expansion of telephone service and cable television; in the banking sector, she spoke of the advent of banks such as the RBTT, FIRST Global and Jamaica Money Market Brokers (JMMB); while in education, she highlighted the upgrading of St. James High and Anchovy High and the construction of Irwin Hill and Green Pond high schools as well as several new junior high and primary schools.
While Mrs. Powell-Hamilton did not ascribe the changes she has seen to any particular group or individual, in a recent statement acknowledging 'Montego Bay at 25', Jamaica's Governor-General Sir Howard Cooke, a former long-serving Member of Parliament in St. James, attributed some of the expansion to the Government, the parish council and several outstanding families.
"In truth and in fact, much of the development was pushed by the political fathers," said the Governor-General in his 'Montego Bay at 25' message, in which he described the city as one that is poised to play a major role in Jamaica's future development.
"Montego Bay is on the cutting edge of Jamaica's future development," the Custos said. "With the airport now geared to handle 17 planes at one time, the easier flow of traffic in and out of the city and the development plans for the western area, generally, the city will continue on its upward growth path."
