Grange Names Drax Hall Development Committee

The Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Honourable Olivia Grange, says that a committee has been established to oversee the execution of the development of the Drax Hall Sports Complex in St Ann.

Minister Grange was speaking yesterday (January 10) following a meeting with the Member of Parliament for North East St Ann, the Honourable Shahine Robinson; Mayor of St Ann’s Bay, Michael Belnavis; President, St Ann Football Association, Danny Beckford; representatives from the Mount Pleasant Football Academy and other key stakeholders to discuss plans for the Drax Hall Sports Complex.

“We have initiated a programme of sports infrastructure development and Drax Hall was one of those facilities identified as one of the Jamaica 55 Legacy Projects. We have set up a committee to see to the execution of the development of the facility,” Minister Grange said.

The Drax Hall Sports Complex is now being used by the Mount Pleasant Football Academy for training and for home matches in the Premier League.

The proposed development for Drax Hall included two football fields, a multipurpose court, swimming pool and a number of other facilities to accommodate other sporting disciplines.

Minister Grange said the committee will review the design in light of works done at the facility by the Mount Pleasant Football Academy.

“This is going to be a perfect example of private/public partnership,” the Minister added.

The committee will include representatives from the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Sport Development Foundation, Independence Park Limited, the St Ann Municipal Corporation, the St Ann Football Association and the Mount Pleasant Football Academy.

“This is really a broad base group coming together in the interest of the development of football in this parish – working together to ensure that we have a first class multipurpose sporting facility in St Ann,” Minister Grange said.

Minister Grange said that the committee has been given a year to execute the development at Drax Hall.