BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - RESIDENTS of the New Road area are soon to benefit from a new playfield for sports and recreational purposes which is scheduled for completion in 2014.
Though a sports facility is located in the St. Peter’s, the ever-expanding New Road Housing Project lacks such a facility for its residents.
In an interview with the Minister of Sports, the Hon. Glen Phillip, he indicated that with the growing population of the area the residents had no facility for sports and recreation so they had to provide the community with the infrastructure.
“For quite some time the population in the New Road area has increased and apart from Monkey Hill there is no real area for sports. There is no place for persons from that area to utilise. We had to look at an area for those persons and so there has been become one of the areas we are planning to use.”
Phillip also explained some of the sports disciplines the facility would house, which include the traditional sports and an area for recreational purposes.
“The usual football, cricket and there is an area for recreation for children. In terms of basketball, no! But what I can say about basketball is that we have placed 26 million dollars in next year’s project...a facility for basketball.”
With the land earmarked for the playfield so close to the Robert Bradshaw International Airport, the Minister said that the infrastructure would be constructed in compliance with aviation rules.
“We are doing it in compliance with the aviation standards. We would not, for example, put buildings there that would impede air traffic.
“What we are doing, the people need recreation and instead of a holistic development of three-storey buildings, we are trying to enhance the playing area there.”
The Minister of Sports added that he is looking probably at year end or January for the facility to be completed.
The playfield is expected to be constructed adjacent to the runway at the Robert L Bradshaw International Airport.
