Carl Spence, Gleaner WriterDESPITE THE Jamaica Rugby Union's (JRU) recent successes in competitions across the Caribbean and internationally, the JRU is faced with the situation of being booted off a section of the Caymanas Estate land which they use as their playing ground.
Information reaching The Gleaner on Thursday is that the JRU was given a 30 days evacuation notice letter by the Urban Development Corporation (UDC) on the 21st of June.
The letter states that the evacuation comes in light of the union's failure to abide by clauses three and four of a lease agreement made between both parties on October 20, 1999.
When contacted on the issue, chairman of the JRU, Jacob Thompson, noted that the clauses in question might have been the association's unwillingness to pay lease funds owed to the UDC.
"I assume the clauses three and four they ( the UDC) have been talking about is that the JRU has not paid any lease for the ground for the last 12 years," he said.
LEASE FEE CONFLICT
The lease fee for the use of the ground was set by the UDC at $150,000 per year.
However, Thompson says his association has been complaining about their inability to pay the fee and the conflict both parties have been having over the destruction of an old clubhouse on the ground.
"I took over as chairman of JRU about eight years ago, and when I took over, I realised we did not have any facility on the ground and I have spent over $1.2 million to fix the clubhouse, which was burnt down and damage by Hurricane Gilbert," he explained.
".. When we started, we went to UDC and were instructed by an engineer that we could build on the lower flat (ground floor) and after spending over $1.2 million we were told by a newly-employed engineer that the building was not safe and that we should break it down and rebuild."
Thompson's view is that he does not think he should be paying that much money for use of an unoccupied land which the rugby association has been using since the association started back the 1980s.
According to Thompson, the union uses the field during the rugby season running from October to April at an average three days a week, including Saturdays when they host major games.
Their usual place of training, he states, is at Up Park Camp or at high school fields which are close to the players' community.
He added that he has been constantly sending letters to the UDC requesting to negotiate payment for use of the land.
However, his efforts seem futile as their latest bill amounted to $800,000 and following that was the notice for evacuation.
"It is not that we refuse paying, we just can't afford the $150,000 a year. I also don't see why we cannot use the field because it is taking thousands of young men and women, who could be gunmen and gunwomen, off the streets," he noted.
When contacted on the matter, Noel Miller, deputy manger for Caymanas Estates, refused to comment on the matter saying it was just between themselves and the rugby union.
The union has had great success in the last couple of weeks with it's senior men's and women's teams winning the Princeton New Jersey 7-A-Side Tournament hosted in New Jersey last week, adding to their recent crowning as Caribbean Rugby Tournament Under-19 champions.
