SVGFF & NTech Sign EC$750k Contract to Install Lights at Brighton Playing Field, St Vincent
The St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) Football Federation (SVGFF) and a local company called NTech inked a contract worth around EC$750.000.00 to light the Brighton Playing Field on Monday, October 9th 2023, at the Brighton Technical Centre.
In his remarks at the occasion, SVGFF President Carl Dickson stated that the illumination of the Brighton facility is being supported by FIFA through its philanthropic arm, the FIFA Foundation. Dickson further stated that FIFA personnel are planned to visit SVG following the completion of the historic project to witness the official lighting of the lights at Brighton.
Fidel Neverson, Project Consultant at the SVGFF, stated that the building phase of the project is projected to span six (6) months.According to Neverson, energy-efficient LED lights would be erected on four poles towering 22 meters or 72 feet tall, each having seven (7) light units. According to Davon Cato, Owner/Manager of NTech, three companies have joined forces to carry out the contract initiative deal. Cato’s Heavy Equipment Rentals and Unique Alliance are the other two.
The contract signing was also observed by the Hon. Frederick Stevenson, Minister of Sport. He stated that installing flood lights at the Brighton Playing Field will allow more athletes to engage in late-night competitions, attracting more spectators.
Stevenson stated that the government has renewed the Brighton Playing Field license to the SVGFF for another 25 years, noting that the facility is one of the most used in the country. He stated that the East St. George delegate, Hon. Camillo Gonsalves, made certain that the new lease arrangement accounted for the requirement for community access to the facility. While commenting on SVG’s preparations to co-host the 2024 men’s T20 Cricket World Cup, the Sport Minister also alluded to the planned refurbishment and lighting of the Arnos Vale Sports Complex and the Cumberland Playing Field.
Meanwhile, government Senator Hon. Ashelle Morgan spoke at the contract signing ceremony in place of Parliamentary Representative for East St. George, Hon. Camillo Gonsalves, who is away on official business. Morgan was pleased to receive the contract to illuminate the facility in her town. She also praised the government and the SVGFF for their efforts to improve the property and make it more appropriate for athletic activities.
The SVGFF received USD$400,000.00 in financing from the FIFA Foundation Recovery Programme in late 2022 to fund the upgrading of the federation’s Technical Centre in Brighton. The project also included the installation of lights at the Brighton site as part of efforts to reinvigorate the sport locally following the devastation caused by the April 2021 eruptions of the La Soufriere volcano.
