Audley Boyd, Assistant Sport Editor
Robert Bryan ... during yesterday's press conference.
THE HEAD of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the ICC Cricket World Cup (CWC) 2007, Robert Bryan, says Jamaica's preparations for the global event are on target.
Bryan outlined work already done at competition venue Sabina Park and warm-up stadium Greenfield, among other things, in an extensive media briefing at the Hilton Hotel, New Kingston, yesterday.
Video clips were utilised in a presentation in which plans for renovating the entire area around Sabina and at Greenfield, which is five miles outside Falmouth, were shown to a well-represented segment of the local media.
At Sabina, the developers are at the phase two stage following the complete demolition of the Air Jamaica Stand, press box, Mound, scoreboard and eastern stands. The new development will include a North Stand with a 7,500 capacity, part of which is to include an approximate 250-seater press area.
Currently, work is being done on the George Headley Stand and Bryan promised this will be complete in time for the Indian tour in March next year.
Significantly, the LOC is aiming to use the Indian tour as a guinea pig to test some of its structures ahead of the World Cup.
'PARK AND RIDE' SYSTEM
Specifically, the much-talked about area of security, broadcasting requirements as well as what was referred to as a 'Park and Ride' system are two of the elements that will be tested because, as Bryan pointed out, "the facilities may not be completed ... so that limits the opportunities we may have had."
The 'Park and Ride' system, wherein patrons park in designated areas away from the facility, is essentially part of a plan to enhance free movement around the ground.
Another facet of this plan relates to residents in the immediate community, some of whom maybe displaced temporarily. No clear strategy was outlined to deal with that problem but Bryan said: "We are going to meet with residents one-on-one. We've been having some discussions ... we want a voluntary compliant solution."
With regards to Greenfield which is to be funded through a Government to Government loan from China, Bryan explained that most importantly, they have been given the green light by the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) to begin construction.
The land has already been cleared and the necessary utilities such as light, water, roads, a plant office and housing for staff have also been implemented.
The work has been contracted to a Chinese company, COMPLANT, which Bryan assures will deliver on time.
"It will be completed in its entirety and handed over to the Government by November 2006," he said.
