GFF on the verge of receiving land
-construction of facility by year end
By Steve Ninvalle
Stabroek News
May 3, 2003
THE Guyana Football Federation may be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel that leads to the acquisition of land to build a football facility.
At a press conference held at the GFF headquarters yesterday president Colin Klass said that the federation is close to receiving 20 to 25 acres of land from a private individual on which the football facility will be built.
Klass said that the land is situated about one mile from Parika, on the southern side of the public road and is centrally located.
Construction of the facility should begin before the end of the year he added.
“It has been confirmed and we are moving forward. The land is just about becoming a reality and we would like to conclude the legal aspect as soon as possible,” Klass said yesterday.
The federation has applied to the government for land but has endured a long waiting period which may have forced them to seek elsewhere.
Through its Goal Project FIFA is willing to donate US$400,000 towards the building of a football facility in Guyana.
However, FIFA would only loosen its purse strings if land is made available.
Minister of Sport Gail Teixeira had stated that the Ministry, in order to process the GFF’s request for land, would require in writing a detailed project document defining total cost, source of funds over stated times and drawings of the said facility among others.
The minister also placed the onus on the GFF to identify possible sites. As a result the federation identified a plot of land at Paradise on the East Coast of Demerara.
Plans to construct there have since been shelved.
According to the GFF president, who was recently re-elected, his organisation will be getting the land at Parika free of cost.
“There is no payment for the land. What their might be is payment for the legal documentation. This is a donation,” Klass said.
He pointed out that although the federation is on the verge of wrapping up the issue of land donation from the private individual there would not be an automatic axing of the request to government.
“We are still open to land from the government. Any land that the government makes available to us we will take with both hands. I don’t think that this facility is the end all for Guyana.
There are lots of things still to be done and we need land. We have not given up on the government and we are still trusting that they will consider us favourably.”
Once the GFF commences construction, the donor will begin an “expansion project” where he will be building hotels and shopping centres on the other 110 acres.
“We think that it would impact significantly on the development of that area,” Klass said.
