Against the backdrop of a dying capital city, a veteran entertainment promoter says life can be brought back to Bridgetown by starting with the hosting of Bridgetown Market in the heart of The City this Crop Over.
Curtis Jordan, founder of the St Philip Carnival and a driving force behind several cultural events across the Caribbean, believes Bridgetown Market has outlived its usefulness on the Mighty Grynner Highway but can now be used to revive Bridgetown itself.
“When you attend Bridgetown Market and then Grand Kadooment, you see the same thing. It is the same old, same old – similar stalls on both sides and one or two children’s play areas. I think we need to relook Bridgetown Market for this Crop Over and beyond.
“We can have Bridgetown Market from Cheapside leading into Fairchild Street so that you would bring more people into Town. If the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) can meet with the vendors and store-owners in Bridgetown, they should be able to offer the owners and vendors incentives and do a Bridgetown Market weekend ‘special’ for the Crop Over season, so that people can feel the need to go into Town again,” Jordan suggested.