JAMAICA Cricket 2007 Limited’s tenure as manager of the Trelawny Multi-purpose Stadium has been extended to September, to allow the government time to complete plans for the future of the facility.

Minister of Information and Development Donald Buchanan said that over the next three months, government will be giving due consideration to completing plans as to how it will be utilised.

He said that the emphasis will be on the development of sports tourism, with special emphasis on developing creative industries and sporting talent.

“Over the next three months, we will decide exactly how we will go forward,” he told Monday’s post-Cabinet briefing at Jamaica House.

Buchanan confirmed that the stadium is costing about $4 million per month for maintenance and security and that the bill is being paid by the National Housing Trust (NHT).

He said that the various agencies concerned with the long- to medium-term development of the facility are engaged in discussions with both public and private enterprises on its future.

The stadium was handed over to Jamaica Cricket 2007 last December. The NHT has been responsible for paying for its maintenance and security since. The cost was originally put at $2 million per month, but Buchanan said Monday that it is actually $4 million.

The stadium, which hosted the opening ceremony for Cricket World Cup 2007, is sited on 40 acres of land and has a capacity for 25,000 patrons. It was built with a US$35-million loan from the Government of China.

It is also understood that there is to be an official change of name of the venue, which is sometimes mistakenly referred to as Greenfield stadium. However, there have been differences of opinion on whom the stadium should be named after between Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller and the community.