Hurricane Melissa inflicted hundreds of millions in damage to the Montego Bay Sports Complex. However, businessman Yoni Epstein remains undeterred in his dream to transform the venue into one of the best stadiums in the Caribbean.

Epstein’s Montego Bay Multi-Sports Development (MBMSD) has been awaiting approval from the Ministry of Local Government after being the lone bidder to lease the 15-year-old facility for $700 million.

However, the stadium, based in Catherine Hall, St James, suffered extensive damage when the Category Five hurricane swept through western Jamaica in late October, leaving the playing surface, stands, lighting, and several other critical areas affected.

Epstein, who also serves as Montego Bay United (MBU) chairman, told the Jamaica Observer that the cost of repairs will be “around $300 million”.

Montego Bay Mayor Richard Vernon confirmed that the stadium, which will be closed for the next few months, is insured at $400 million, which will likely assist the rehabilitation process.

In November 2024, MBMSD announced plans to transform the venue into a modern stadium that meets the standards of several international sporting bodies, with a refurbished track and an Olympic-sized swimming pool among the priorities.

Despite the setback a year later, Epstein says he has no intention of withdrawing from the process, as he seeks to begin the upgrade work as soon as possible.

“In the face of adversity, where you have life, you can rebuild,” he told the Observer. “I think this is an even greater opportunity now to liken it to the next National Stadium in Jamaica. I think the dream is still very much there. It may be pushed out a little bit because you’re starting from a blank canvas almost, [but] there’s nothing changing what we wanted to do, so now we move a little bit faster.

“The first step of getting rid of hopelessness is cleaning up. If you can clean up your area, and even if you lost your roof, but the area looks like it was prior to — you start to feel better already. So we have started to mobilise a team to look at what it would cost to remove the rubble, remove the mud, clean it up, because I think that’s the first thing, and that is now. When you finish that, that’s your first day to say, ‘Alright, Catherine Hall is back, now let’s rebuild it.’ “

Epstein says upgrades would bring what he describes as tremendous benefits, not just to the parish, but the country.

“We wanted to really turn it into, not just about major sporting events, but what can people do there every day,” he said.

“Small-sided football pitches, pickleball, a youth academy pitch where you can play up to Under-13 matches because it’s played on a much smaller field. The training ground for the players, player housing, and things like that, not only for MBU, but other travelling teams can come in. I think the opportunities are endless. And because you have somewhat of a blank canvas, you can build to that immediately.”

Since Melissa’s passage, various sectors across the country have been taking steps to improve preparations for future natural disasters.

While there’s no guarantee that the stadium will be spared from future disaster, Epstein says it’s something he’ll have to live with.

“You can’t just walk away from it,” he said. “You can’t just lock the door and throw away the key and say you’re done with it. I don’t have a crystal ball to say that it’s going to happen next year or in the next 10 years or the next 40 years, but in everything, when you take a calculated risk, there’s going to be risk there.

“That’s why you have insurance, [and] I’m sure insurance premiums for everything is going to go through the roof because they’re going to have to make back the money that they would have lost in this catastrophic damage across the country. But by no means is it a reason to say, ‘Let’s not do it anymore.’ ”

Epstein says his mission goes beyond personal gain as he wants to uplift the community of Catherine Hall after the challenges the community has faced.

“Catherine Hall is our community,” he said. “Catherine Hall is where Montego Bay United’s home is and it is our duty to continue to carry that dream out, regardless of the destruction that has taken place.

“It’s not only about big events, it’s about everyday opportunities to go there and play football, play pickleball, building a swimming pool for swimming athletes in the west, redoing the track that is not just open for track meets, but is open for training for the high schools that are going to the boys’ and girls’ Champs. And that in itself, I think, would be a big lift for the community.

“If you go and watch football anywhere in England, it’s like they built the stadium and then they built the community around it, because that is the life and the lifeblood of the area. that’s what we want to ensure we continue to create in Catherine Hall.”

Montego Bay Sports Complex post-Hurricane Melissa