KSAMC hails Kingston Creative for beautification of downtown Kingston
Published:Wednesday | September 13, 2023 | 12:10 AMAinsworth Morris/Staff Reporter
Kingston Creative’s beautification project in downtown Kingston will today receive a further boost of US$15,000 from the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) and Expedia Group to continue the mission of beautifying the previously aged spaces and enhancing the area for tourists, visitors and residents to equally enjoy.
For years, Kingston Creative has been on a mission to revive and transform spaces in downtown Kingston, into grand areas where art, music and culture is highly appreciated.
In further boosting its work, Kingston Creative was selected, on recommendation by the JTB, to be awarded the Expedia Sustainability Grant for 2023 to support its work in community tourism and the wider cultural and creative industries.
On Tuesday, during the monthly sitting of the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC), Delroy Williams, mayor of Kingston, applauded Kingston Creative.
He said the KSAMC, through its Kulture Key initiative, previously partnered with the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF) – an agency of the Ministry of Tourism – for the project, which includes activities done with Kingston Creative.
Current work includes the planting of trees, constructing planter boxes, painting of murals, installation of flag poles and the bricking of the roadway between Barry Street and Port Royal Street in downtown Kingston.
Williams said “the space has been becoming very active over the last year or so” primarily with the help of the Kingston Creative team, under the supervision and guidance of Andrea Dempster-Chung, based on the work that they have been doing to enhance the space.
“They have been organising and putting on several events within the space. We have always said, ‘It’s one thing to create spaces. It’s another thing for the spaces to be used’, and we want the spaces to be used, and so, in this regard, the Kingston Creative team has been doing a wonderful job in hosting the creative artwalk within the space on a monthly basis,” Williams stated.
He encouraged other groups and other Jamaicans to continue to explore the events and activities being hosted within the space.
In June, Kerry Washington, award-winning actress, director and producer, who has Jamaican roots, visited the Artwalk Festival which was being hosted in the same space. Her social media posts gave the area a boost, bringing eyes to the work of creatives in Jamaica who contributed pieces to the space.
The Artwalk Festival celebrates Kingston, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Creative City of Music and highlights Jamaican culture, creativity, and artisans.