Kwesi Mugisa, Staff Reporter
In just over a week the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) is expected to select the contractor who will be responsible for the construction of the National Football Academy to be located in Malvern, St. Elizabeth.
With stringent deadlines already beginning to come into play, the JFF is expected to accept the recommendation of a quantity surveyors committee which will be responsible for the review of the four issued tender documents that were returned to the JFF on Monday, July 24.
"We'll be going through the tender documents to ensure that the documents are consistent, all the prices are in keeping with current prices and reflect a fair and reasonable tender," said Michael Robinson, quantity surveyor for the JFF's Academy project, at a press briefing in which the tender documents were officially opened at the JFF headquarters yesterday.
August Construction
"We will also make checks on the material costs and ensure that the project can be built for the price that it is stated at, we will then submit a report to the administration," he added.
Once accepted by the administration, the awardee will be expected to begin construction in early August and is expected to be finished for January 1st of next year.
The facility is expected to have an administrative suite, residential blocks, lecture areas and welfare facilities, all of which are to be built in the first phase of the project that is expected to last for six months.
While admitting that the change in venue has caused some delay in construction, president of the JFF, Crenston Boxhill, is now pleased with how things are progressing.
"We have a location for the Academy which will be far from all the unhealthy distractions that our youth and footballers can sometimes face," he said.
Revamp Landscape
"Another plus is that it will be near to educational institutions in the event the younger ones are there for extended periods," he added.
The project is expected to fit in with the administration's plans to revamp the local football landscape, especially in the light of a crop of horrific recent results for the national team.
This will not only include an overhauling of the technical staff, but also see the return of international football to the National Stadium. On October 8, the Reggae Boyz will play a return friendly against Canada, after facing them four days prior to that in Toronto.
Five weeks later the Reggae Boyz will face three-time World Cup qualifiers Peru, who are 42nd in the current FIFA rankings.
The goal of the administration as stated by Boxhill is to have a match home or away every month.
