Sports Development Foundation

SUNDAY, JULY 18, 2021 17 by the SDF in 2015. “To be a level one facility is not the inherent quality of the track itself, but there has tobe right next to it a facility where warm-ups can take place on a surfacewhich is similar towhat obtains on the first track. The G.C. Foster track is a level two, only for the reason that it has one track, but in terms of qual- ity, it’s just the same as the National Stadium,”Wilks explained. Outside of the Corporate Area, Jarrett Park inMontego Bay, St James, has been established as one of the premier sporting venues in the west- ern end of the island. Amulti-use facil- ity with a seating capacity of 4,000 persons, Jarrett Park benefited from funding fromthe Sports Development Foundation. The facility has played host to a number of local and interna- tional tournaments, in the disciplines of cricket and football. While facilities such as these have cemented Jamaica’s ability to construct and maintain first-class sporting structures, the SDF has also focused on providing less grandi- ose facilities across the country in an effort to foster community cohe- sion and development. These include multipurpose courts, school sports complexes and playing fields. “We have done quite a bit of work at Frome High School, we have done at Llandillo, in Spanish Town at the Prison Oval, and we did a major facility at Goshen in St Elizabeth. Just recently we completed a field at Alligator Pond, we just completed another field at a place calledWilson Shop in Alexandria, St Ann. That facil- ity includes a field, a multipurpose court and lighting for both. That facil- ity was done in partnership with the Tourism Enhancement Fund. We also have a project over in Moore Town where Nanny is interred,” saidWilks. He is also proud of the work done in schools across the country. “We just completed a multipur- pose court at Aabuthnott Gallimore, out in St Ann, and at the same time, we have completed another multi- purpose court down in Sutton Street Southside in the heart of what is a very volatile community at the Holy Family Primary School. With the assistance of the Sugar Transformation Unit in the Ministry of Agriculture, a major school assistance project known as the High School Sports Infrastructure Improvement Project was implemented since 2014, mainly in areas where sugar cane pro- duction was the dominant economic activity. Some 23 schools received assistance under this programme, in the parishes of Westmoreland, Trelawny, St Thomas, Clarendon, St Catherine, St Elizabeth, Portland, St Andrew and Manchester. Schools were provided with fields, courts, long jump, and change room facilities. SDF has played and continues to play its role in the area of social behaviour management. Areas experiencing serious behavioural challenges have been targeted for infrastructure intervention as part of efforts to curb deviance and, hence, reduce crime. A deliberate effort has been made to place sporting infra- structure in areas that have been des- ignated zones of special operations. Repairs to existing infrastructure have been done in Tivoli Gardens, DenhamTown, Hannah Town, Arnett Gardens, all in the Corporate Area. In addition, Cambridge, Paradise, and Farm Heights in St James, Spanish Town in St Catherine, and May Pen in Clarendon have been recipients of infrastructure projects to address the crime challenges. The SDF currently has plans to execute some 34 projects across the island geared at upgrading the nation’s sports facilities. The objec- tive, however, remains the same as it was when it opened its doors 25 years ago – to sustain the coun- try’s high level of performance in sport by retrofitting and improv- ing the infrastructure to create the right environment for training and development. LEGACY CONTINUED FROM 14