Thursday, October 29, 2026
St Ann’s land rush is moving inland. The Mayor of St Ann’s Bay told a stakeholder meeting in Drax Hall that one developer has approval to build 1,500 homes and another 700 to 800 units, while more developers are asking to rezone farmland for commercial use. Land he said could be bought for about $10,000 an acre in the 1990s now fetches millions, with some properties quoted in US dollars, and he expects Moneague to be transformed once roads and water are in place.
The water is the catch. In an update dated 23 October, the National Water Commission said customers in Moneague, Clapham, Swamp, River Head, Silkfield, Grierfield and Roadside would be without supply while a pumping unit at its Moneague facility was repaired, and the target date for completion slipped to today, Thursday, 29 October. Water is being trucked in, with “Moneague Housing Schemes” on the weekly delivery schedule. Rezoning and planning approval do not, by themselves, bring a pipe to the gate. So which arrives first in St Ann: the next 1,500 homes, or the water to serve them?
A big glossy green arrow marked “LAND PRICES” zigzags up over the St Ann hills, and suited developers with briefcases and rolled-up plans clamber towards the top, where a banner reading “1,500 HOMES” is being planted. Down in its shadow, residents of every age queue with empty buckets at a dry standpipe, one bucket marked “NO WATER”, while a small rusty tanker labelled “WATER TRUCK” does the rounds.
Read more: St Ann’s Land Rush Heads South. The Water Hasn’t Arrived.
Visit our YouTube Community ↗