After more than a decade calling for the building of another airport and seaport in St Lucy, his urgings are at last being seriously considered by Government.

Kellman, the parliamentary representative for St Lucy since 1994, has built a reputation for fiercely promoting the interests of his constituency at every opportunity he's had during debates in the House of Assembly.

And his message, though often parochial – and some would argue out of place for many of those parliamentary occasions – has always been pointed and consistent.

He never missed a chance to vent his frustration at the level of underdevelopment in the constituency, including bad roads, not enough street lights, poor bus service, the need to improve water distribution, and the lack of adequate Government amenities to spur more social and economic activity.

So strident have been his calls that Kellman has been dubbed the "Mayor of Moon Town" - the place in Half Moon Fort, St Lucy, where he has a thriving business.

One of Kellman's earliest comprehensive contributions on these matters came in his reply to the 1995 Budget in Parliament. Then, he also called on the Government to build another community college and polytechnic in northern rural Barbados.

He also asked Government to open more offices in that area, set up craft booths, and seriously tap its ecotourism potential. Kellman deemed it "a sin" that people were forced to leave parishes like St Lucy, St Andrew, St Peter, and St Joseph and travel "all the way to town" to do business as simple as paying for a driver's licence.

Through the years, the wisdom of his suggestions or the exigency of the need to revitalise Speightstown in particular, led to significant developmental initiatives and more investment in the area. Yet St Lucy lagged behind other constituencies, while his repeated calls for an airport were derogatorily dismissed as a "flight of fancy".

In November 2000 while debating a resolution for a Government guarantee of a 15 million euro loan to upgrade the Grantley Adams International Airport, Kellman said Barbados' continued development required a second airport, a second hospital and a second seaport.

He restated his conviction that a second airport should be sited in St Lucy, while a second look should be taken at the former United States Naval Base at Harrison's Point.

He insisted then that Government should not be spending large sums on the existing airport. Rather, the money should be spent on preparing an alternative airport in case of an emergency situation as this would ensure other options were available.

Kellman must now be buoyed over Minister of Tourism, Richard Sealy's statement that Government will be examining the economic feasibility of having cruise ships berth in either Speightstown or St Lucy, and an airport in St Lucy in an effort to broaden tourism beyond the West and South Coasts.

He can feel gratified that his perseverance has not failed.