By Neto Baptiste
Stopping short of predicting when upgrades at the Cassada Gardens Racetrack could be completed, President of the Antigua Turf Club (ATC), Hansen Richards, said that despite recent showers, progress has been steady and on time.
Speaking on the Good Morning Jojo sports show Richards — elected for a two-year term back in May of 2023 — said work on the remodelling and modernising of the track has, so far, taken precedence.
“Reshaping the facility, reshaping the track which we have completed; so it’s just to lay down some more of the foundation at the backstretch which we have created, so the installation of the pipes, the homestretch and the backstretch have been completed. It’s just one or two little adjustments need to be done because of the erosion; when we were just about to complete it, the rains came and stopped us,” he said.
Estimating that EC $200,000 has been spent on works at the facility thus far, Richards pointed to the construction of a dam as a major part of the project.
“The dam is to supply the racetrack with water. We got the blessings from APUA to create that inside there so we have the water internally rather that we use APUA’s water. Even though it’s free because all sporting facilities were exempted from paying utilities from the previous administrators, we thought it fit and better to use our own water than to strain the water for the residents and we can utilise our own and keep it internal,” the turf boss said.
There has been no racing at the track in over two years, but Richards said that most of the body’s members are quite understanding given the few who may be disgruntled.
“Unless you have races, you are not going to have happy horse owners so to speak, because they are feeding the horses. But you have to be in the position to understand that in order for you to have racing you must have money and you have to have the support.
So the feedback that I am getting is that one or two horsemen understand and they look for the long term benefits, but you still have some disgruntled guys out there who haven’t paid to be a member of the turf club but has the most to say, but ask them to put something to the pot and they can’t,” he said.
The turf club is currently working in conjunction with a UK-based group that has committed to an EC$30 million investment into the Cassada Gardens Racetracks.
