Walter Scott can’t remember the exact date that he became a member of Kingston Cricket Club. “Twenty-odd years going on 30,” he said. “Long time.”

But now, as he enters office as president, Scott, a distinguished attorney and Queen’s Counsel, is sure about one thing — the 157-year-old club cannot be allowed to fail.

“Unfortunately in this century we are in the commercialisation of sport, and if we want to ensure that a club that is 157 years old continues, and doesn’t end up like Jamaica Club or St Andrew Club, which have disappeared, then our members will have to pursue a commercial path in order to raise the income to subsidise cricket, and to provide the venue, and facilities that members want, and ought to have to participate meaningfully,” Scott argued in an interview with the Jamaica Observer two Fridays ago.

To realise those goals Scott and his officers who will serve as the managing committee for the 2020 term, have four pressing priorities — refurbish the building; expand the range of activities for members and grow the membership; place the club on a sound financial footing; and get the club’s cricketers to play more cricket.

“What we propose to do, along with our investment advisors, is to float a bond issue and use the proceeds to refurbish the building,” Scott told the Observer, pointing out that the list of things to be done is in no specific order of importance.

The committee, he said, has not projected what the refurbishment will cost, but the intention is to seek $100 million from the bond issue.

“We’re going to have an extraordinary general meeting on June 18, when a number of matters will be put to the membership, inclusive of the bond issue, and if the membership agrees with it, then within a relatively short period after that we can go out, we can sell the bond, we can raise the money we need to fix up the building and do the other things we need to,” he said.

“As part of the refurbishment, one of the things we want to do is to completely refurbish the first floor and turn it into a top-class restaurant complete with meeting rooms — small and large — for those persons who want to host events there. There’s ample parking and security, so people can have a meeting, have a decent lunch in an atmosphere that is conducive, that is first rate.”

The team’s vision, he explained, also sees Sabina Park attracting visitors, especially those from cruise ships on tours of the capital city. The intention is to establish a museum and souvenir shop at the venue which, he proudly described as “part of the holy grail of West Indies cricket”.

“Just like you’re going on a bus tour and you’re going to Trench Town to look at Bob Marley’s place, you’re going to Bob Marley Museum, you’re going to Devon House, one stop ought to be Kingston Cricket Club,” Scott insisted.

“For all of the great matches that were played there, for all of the great personalities that were there, everything of importance in cricket that took place in the West Indies took place either at Sabina Park, Kensington Oval in Barbados, or Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad,” he said.

Scott’s passion for cricket was obvious as he discussed the need to get the club’s cricketers playing the game more frequently.

“We have to develop cricket because enough cricket is not being played,” he argued. “The Senior Cup is on now… six teams in each zone, so you play five games. If you don’t qualify to go to the next round you will only play five games for the year. That is insufficient cricket to develop youngsters, particularly to play four-day and five-day cricket when you need to be batting for extensive periods and learning how to concentrate. So if we are serious about cricket development we need to work on getting more cricket played by our youngsters,” Scott said, adding that the Senior Cup is the pathway to the Jamaica team, which, in turn, provides an opening to the West Indies team.

Woven into that desire to increase match experience is the ultimate aim of establishing a women’s team as women’s cricket in the West Indies, he acknowledged, is growing. That, Scott also envisions, will help meet his administration’s goal of getting more women to join the club.

“As part of this thrust we elected Miss Peta-Gay Manderson, a young attorney-at-law, on the management committee, because we want to demonstrate to young professionals and others that this is a club that welcomes women, and we want more women members,” Scott stated.

Additionally, the new administration is determined to grow membership among that segment of the society that can afford to pay membership fees.

“We have over 600 members on record, but apart from when cricket is being played, we never ever see the vast majority of them,” he said.

Addressing the issue of activities for members, Scott noted that while cricket is the primary activity at the club, the majority of the members do not play the game. “Yet, they watch cricket… So, while supporting those who play, we need to create a whole range of other activities for those who don’t play, other than coming to watch cricket”.

But all those plans rest on the club having a steady income stream which, he pointed out, cannot be realised from membership fees.

“The membership dues cannot run the club. Membership dues last year, in round numbers, amounted to about an eighth of what it cost to operate and we didn’t operate optimally last year. We need a lot more revenue to operate. So that revenue can only be driven from a number of different commercial sources,” Scott insisted.

“There are a whole range and raft of potential commercial opportunities that we need to explore and get involved in, in order to have an income stream… if we arrange ourselves properly, organise our income streams properly, particularly if we get into branding of the building and those things that go with it, then we will have dedicated income streams that we can use to pay the coupon on the bond and to do the things that we need to do. The approach has to be a commercial approach. There’s just no other way.”

Kingston Cricket Club’s managing committee for 2020 term

President — Walter Scott

Vice-President — Clinton Lewis

Honorary Secretary — Linton Walters

Honorary Treasurer — Thomas Smith

Club Captain — Peter Jackson

Committee Members

Radcliffe Daley

Raymond Donaldson

Michael Howell

Peta-Gaye Manderson

George Overton

Nehemiah Perry

Junior Stewart

Ray Wynter

Errol Ziadie

Except for Ray Wynter all the committee members are new.

All former officers, President Alva Anderson, Vice-President Emile Spence, Honorary Secretary Douglas Beckford, Honorary Treasurer John Largie, and Club Captain Kerry Scott did not seek re-election.