NEVIS--Roads across Nevis are set to receive official names while village and locality boundaries will be formally defined under a new Nevis Island Administration (NIA) initiative designed to improve emergency response, navigation, postal services, utility operations, and community planning.
The initiative, being undertaken by the NIA Department of Physical Planning and Environment in collaboration with the Department of Community Development, comprises the Nevis Road Naming Project and the Village & Locality Boundaries Project. Minister of Physical Planning, Spencer Brand, underscored the importance of the initiative, noting that it will significantly enhance the ability of critical agencies, including the Emergency Medical Services (EMS), Police, Fire and Rescue Services, the Nevis Water Department, NEVLEC, and the Postal Services, to locate homes, businesses, and other destinations more efficiently. “This is a critically important project for the island of Nevis. It is important for our emergency services, our water department, our electricity department, our postal services. Gone are the days when we can tell someone go down the road by the big stone and the white house. “We are embarking on an initiative where we can give precise location to anyone when it comes to finding a location on the island of Nevis. The Nevis Island Administration Cabinet has given its blessing and is very anxious and eager to see this process completed. We are hoping that we can complete this exercise and have it launched before the end of 2026,” he explained. Director of the Department of Physical Planning and Environment, Deora Pemberton, provided an overview of the project, explaining that the initiative officially began two years ago with an extensive community consultation process during which residents were invited to propose names for roads in their respective communities. “The period of consultation lasted just about three months where we allowed the community members to propose names for their roads and roads within the surrounding communities. That information was relayed to us and we subsequently had it mapped and within the Department we ratified the names. “So where we are right now is the validation sessions with the community, going back to the communities just to present what we've completed so far.” Deputy Director Titlon Douglas-Weekes outlined the schedule for the upcoming public town hall validation sessions, where residents will have the opportunity to review and validate the proposed road names and village and locality boundaries before the project is finalized. The public is invited to attend the sessions as follows: *St. John’s Parish – Pond Hill Community Centre, Thursday, July 16, 2026, at 6:00pm. *St. Paul’s Parish – St. Paul’s Anglican Church Hall, Thursday, August 20, 2026, at 6:00pm. *St. James Parish – Franklin Brown Community Centre, Thursday, August 27, 2026, at 6:00pm. Additional validation sessions for the remaining parishes will be announced at a later date. Minister Brand commended the staff of the Department of Physical Planning and Environment for their dedication to the initiative and the extensive work undertaken to bring the project to its current stage. “I believe that they have done a remarkable job in getting us to this point.” The Nevis Road Naming Project map and Village Locality Boundaries map can be viewed on the Nevis Island Administration Website-Documents-Physical Planning and Environment Documents – Nevis Island Administration.
