Morant Bay Urban Centre not yet in business

Four months after its official opening, the Morant Bay Urban Centre, MBUC, confirmed tenants are retrofitting their allotted spaces but are yet to start doing business there.

The 365,000-square-foot commercial complex, which opened in May, is expected to house a mix of government services and private-sector operators, and has long been touted as a game changer to bring investment and jobs in the parish of St Thomas.

The MBUC is an integrated industrial and commercial complex developed through public-private partnership led by Factories Corporation of Jamaica Limited, FCJ, at a reported cost of $6 billion, starting in 2018.

The tenants were initially given three months to outfit their spaces to commence business, but FCJ Chairman Lyttleton ‘Tanny’ Shirley says some leeway has been extended to the tenants, and that process was proceeding apace. He said he expects some of the businesses to be operational in the next few months.

“We have been gracious enough to extend the three-month build out period in which they go in and retrofit the space to their business requirements,” Shirley told the Financial Gleaner.

“What you will find is that some of the tenants are more advanced than others in completing their spaces, and that is understandable… . It’s coming on smoothly. Most of the tenants are very receptive to the centre and are excited to be there,” he said.

The FCJ chairman said the completion of their spaces by the tenants was also affected by the competition for labour, with the end of the year being a busy period for construction. But he said the tenants were being encouraged to complete their facilities in a timely manner.

“In business you have to be amicable and flexible. As a landlord. pressuring your client may mean that you possibly can lose your client. We are working with our clients, but at the same time we have to set standards,” he said.

Entities expected to be located at the MBUC include the St Thomas Municipal Corporation, the parish court, the Registrar General’s Department, the tax office, a supermarket, restaurants, and an outsourcing company.

MBUC is expected to house the first KFC restaurant in the parish. Shirley said preparation for the opening of the fried chicken franchise is far advanced.

“I am pleased with tenants like KFC who stepped out in front and are retrofitting their buildings to look the finest … as it relates to KFC, I guarantee you by the end of October, you’ll be eating finger-licking chicken there,” Shirley said.

Efforts to speak to a representative of Restaurants of Jamaica, local operators of the KFC franchise, were unsuccessful.

Meanwhile, some members of the St Thomas Municipal Corporation are concerned about the proposed rental charge for its new home. The municipal corporation, which is the seat of local government, will pay a proposed rental of $10.3 million per month for the facility, which some of its members have said is too high.

Minority Leader in the corporation, Hubert Williams, in a report, described the rent as exorbitant and a rip-off for the people of St Thomas.

At least one entrepreneur from the parish, who is in negotiation to occupy a space there, is considering giving it up because it is too expensive.

“I have not signed off on my lease yet … most of the people who will occupy it are millionaires and are not from the parish,” the businessperson said.

But Shirley said the rental rates being charged are reasonable, given the investment in the centre’s development.

“The issue with the parish council is understandable, in that they will be moving from a smaller space to a larger space. We have had discussions with the municipality and we suggested that they bring in additional agencies into the infrastructure, so that they can operate on a shared-cost basis,” he said.

Shirley also confirmed that negotiations with a supermarket operator, as well as an outsourcing company to establish businesses in the MBUC, are ongoing.

“We are in negotiation right now concerning rental rates with one of the top BPO companies operating in Jamaica. We are comfortable that they will be there (at MBUC),” he said.

Shirley also indicated that a small branch of National Commercial Bank Jamaica would be set up at the centre.

In the meantime, finishing touches are being made to the MBUC, including landscaping.

“This is the first urban centre of its kind to be built in Jamaica, and to our financial and other stakeholders, its success will determine whether it can be replicated across the island,” he said.

Factories Corporation is in the process of developing a similar facility at Boundbrook in Portland, which is being developed at a cost of $4.2 billion. China Harbour Engineering Company Limited is the contractor on this project, as well as the MBUC.

luke.douglas@gleanerjm.com