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Описание: The Morant Bay Urban Centre was sold to the Jamaican public as a big deal.

But the only big deal about what has happened since the prime minister cut the ribbon to open the facility amid glitz, fanfare and expectation 217 days ago, are the popular meal offerings sold by KFC.

The commercial complex is managed by the Factories Corporation of Jamaica, FCJ.

KFC apart, it was supposed to provide a home for the St. Thomas Municipal Corporation, the parish court, the Registrar General’s Department, other fast food establishments and BPO companies.

Our news centre observed construction work happening at various sections of the complex.

Our interest in the state of affairs at the complex was piqued by an anonymous letter sent to our news centre by a frustrated tenant. In the letter the tenant complains to the FCJ about the absence of electricity at the complex and the massive dust nuisance.

The tenant laments overall conditions saying the state of their unit is not conducive to safe outfitting and the installation of fixtures.

The tenant says only a few other tenants are even attempting to build out the spaces assigned to them, asserting that they are all frustrated by the lack of readiness of the place for business.

Nationwide News also understands that China Harbour Engineering Company, CHEC, the contractor on the project, wrote to the FCJ in January this year, saying they cannot commit to a date for the completion of works at the facility.

According to CHEC, the main problems confronting tenants at the complex have to deal with the absence of electricity from the JPS and water from the NWC.

On the point of water, there is no running water at the facility for any tenant. Not even KFC.

In fact, sources at KFC, who refused to speak on the record because they were not authorised to do so, say the company has only been able to open because it gets two truckloads of water daily for each shift, to meet operational needs. The water is provided by a supplier in Kingston and is stored in three water tanks the company has been compelled to install.

Where electricity is concerned, KFC opened using a generator. The company eventually got the JPS to connect it to the power supply grid.

The KFC sources did say they are in constant dialogue with officials at the FCJ who they say are trying to assist with removing the obstacles to doing business. They say the FCJ picks up the tab for the daily trucking of water.

When our team visited last Friday, we spoke with an official from FCJ who said the facility is designed to host 50 tenants.

We observed intense work on one building, said to be the future home of Juici Patties.

When the Morant Bay Urban Centre was opened in May last year, a group of about 14 business owners, who were set to be among the first to occupy stores at the facility, stood beside the prime minister on the podium, holding a symbolic key.

It's fair to say that none of them would've expected to still be waiting to move in and get down to business.

Meanwhile, the FCJ says no fixed or definitive date can be committed by the contractors on when the construction works will be fully completed.

In a letter dated January 20 this year, CHEC tells the FCJ that all works under the original urban centre construction contract have been substantially completed.

It states that any remaining unfinished contract works are not due to construction deficiency but linked to outstanding utility-related dependencies.

These include commissioning of permanent electrical power by Jamaica Public Service company and water relocation works by the National Water Commission.

It says completion of the remaining interface works depends on the resolution of these issues.

The FCJ says certificates for tenants to occupy their building units has not yet been issued.

It says the units must not be formally handed over to or used by tenants at this stage.Nine months after its official opening, the Morant Bay Urban Centre in St. Thomas is not yet ready for business.

The facility, being built at a cost of $6 billion occupies about 360,000 square feet of space in the eastern parish.

It was opened to the public, amid much fanfare in May 2025. But when our news centre visited last Friday morning, only KFC was up and running.

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We analyze government policies, national issues, and current affairs using mainstream Jamaican media like Nationwide with Cliff Hughes and official government reports such as Jamaica Information Service.

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