Matthew: Master plan for YASCO nearing completion

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Ribbon cutting ceremony at the YASCO Sports Complex in March. President of the NOC Chet Greene (right), Minister of Sports Daryll Matthew (centre) and President of the ABAA Everton ‘Mano’ Cornelius (left) cut the ribbon to officially open the newly refurbished track.
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By Neto Baptiste 

A master plan for the country’s lone track and field facility, the YASCO Sports Complex, could be presented to Cabinet in short order. 

This is according to Minister of Sports, Daryll Matthew, who said the committee charged with the development and maintenance of the track is in the closing stages of putting the plans together. 

“The committee in charge of YASCO [has] indicated they are in the final phases of the development of the master plan which will show things like seating, parking facilities, the warm-up track and what a completed YASCO will look like. Like I’ve always said to the public, the replacement of the track is only the first phase of what is expected to be a full retrofit of the facility and that master plan had existed in various forms, but not in a formal way. It is now being put together as a complete document for full presentation to the Cabinet,” he said.  

In March, YASCO was used by athletes for the first time in over two years after work first started on resurfacing the track which had deteriorated beyond use. Technicians completed the laying of a new Mondo surface at the facility in early March this year. 

The master plan, Matthew said, would allow government and its partners to identify the areas that are of high priority.

“It has always been made known that a lot of the material or some of the material from the double decker stand will be recycled and repurposed to be used as seating for YASCO. We have had some discussions in terms of the delay in the demolition of the double decker stand, and we’ve been waiting for about eight weeks since I’ve met with the vendors and the vendors have all come on board,” he said.

Matthew, in February, said usable material from the famed WIOC or double decker stand will be used to erect seating at the YASCO Sports Complex. He said wood from the soon to be demolished stand is earmarked to be used at the track and field facility. 

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