The National Housing Trust (NHT) has issued a final warning to unauthorised occupants of lands earmarked for a major housing development in Manchester, demanding that they vacate the property within 30 days or face forcible removal.

The notice, dated March 14, 2025, follows an initial warning issued nearly a year earlier on April 15, 2024. It instructs the occupants to “quit and deliver up possession” of lands registered at Volume 622 Folio 83 in Mount Nelson which is located roughly 20 minutes from Mandeville.

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The property, which spans 558 acres, was formerly part of a bauxite mining estate owned by Rio Tinto Alcan, previously known as Alcan Aluminium Limited out of Canada, according to documents pulled from the National Land Agency by the
Jamaica Observer. It was transferred to the Government of Jamaica in November 2014 via the minister of housing, for a nominal sum of one dollar, as part of a broader strategy to repurpose mined-out lands for housing and national development.

Now under the remit of the NHT, the site is central to the Mount Nelson Housing Development, one of the largest projects in the agency’s current portfolio. The multi-phase development is set to deliver 1,758 housing solutions which will include serviced lots, starter units, townhouses, and both one- and two-bedroom homes, designed to provide affordable options for low- to middle-income earners.

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The project is a collaboration between the NHT and Henan Fifth Construction Group. As part of the agreement, the Henan Fifth Group will decide how and to whom it will sell 290 units.

The first set of units are expected to be available by July 2026, and another in October of the same year. Three more sets will be available in February, June, and September 2027 and the final three sets will be delivered in January, April, and July 2028, Prime Minister Andrew Holness said at the ground breaking ceremony on March 7.

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Efforts to secure vacant possession of the land have intensified, with the Trust citing continued illegal occupation despite repeated warnings. While the NHT did not disclose how many people are currently squatting on the property, the reissuance of the notice suggests growing urgency as site preparation progresses.

The Mount Nelson case highlights the tension between informal settlement and formal housing development, particularly in areas where squatters have occupied lands targeted for public investment. Such encroachments have been flagged as a major obstacle to timely project execution, often driving up costs and delaying delivery timelines.

Still, the NHT’s enforcement efforts reflect a wider push by the Government to regularise land tenure across Manchester and other parishes.

Between March and July 2023, the Government handed over land titles to dozens of residents in the parish. In Blenheim, 58 homeowners received their titles, while in New Forest and surrounding areas, 20 residents were formally recognised as landowners. These initiatives are part of a national effort to promote legal ownership, enhance security of tenure, and enable residents to access credit and invest in their properties.