Noel Garcia hopes repairs can extend life of Hasely Crawford Stadium

CHAIRMAN of Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (Udecott) Noel Garcia is hopeful that the renovation being done on the Hasely Crawford Stadium can extend the life of the facility for decades.

Hasely Crawford Stadium was closed a few weeks ago to start repairs for the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games, which will be hosted in TT from August 4 to 11.

The events include netball (Fast5), rugby sevens, athletics, beach volleyball, cycling, swimming and triathlon.

Athletics was initially scheduled to be held at Dwight Yorke Stadium in Bacolet, Tobago. However, the local organising committee decided to switch athletics to Hasely Crawford Stadium because it has more capacity and it is more accessible as it is located in the capital of Trinidad.

Asked for an update on the readiness of the venues for the games, Ministry of Sport and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe said things are moving along “quite nicely.”

She was speaking after a courtesy call for the national Under-16 netball team at City Hall in Port of Spain on Wednesday.

In an interview with Newsday on Thursday, Garcia confirmed that the renovations will be completed in June.

“The contractors are working assiduously,” Garcia said. “They are confident that we will finish in June. The games are in August, so it gives us almost two months (breathing room) before the actual games. So far we are on track.”

Giving details on the work, Garcia said, “We are doing new seating. I am told the mass lighting (is being fixed), we have to redo it…we are doing significant repairs to the track to bring it up to international standards for the games.”

Garcia said the plumbing and escalators are among the other amenities being renovated.

He is hoping when the repairs are complete the Hasely Crawford Stadium can be considered a top-class facility for decades to come.

“I hope that when it is done it will extend the life of the stadium for another 30, 40 years because the stadium is over 40 years old. To build a new stadium it will cost probably $1 billion-plus so this work we hope will extend the life of the stadium for another 30 to 40 years.”

Giving the details of what the renovations will cost, Garcia said, “It is approximately $70 million.” There may be other miscellaneous costs said Garcia.

The Hasely Crawford Stadium opened 41 years ago in 1982. It was initially named The National Stadium, but in 1996 it was renamed the Hasely Crawford Stadium after TT’s first Olympic gold medallist.

The stadium has hosted multiple regional and international events including matches in the 2001 FIFA Under-17 boys World Cup and the 2010 FIFA Under-17 girls World Cup.