HCC to spruce up Rufaro Stadium

Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Sports Reporter
HARARE City Council has embarked on an ambitious project to install bucket seats and shade right round Rufaro Stadium in an exercise that the City says will cost about RTGS $2, 5million.

The project, set to be complete before the end of the year, will see Rufaro Stadium becoming the first football facility in the country to have bucket seats throughout the terraces instead of the VIP area only as is the case with Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo, Mandava Stadium in Zvishavane and Baobab Stadium, home to Ngezi Platinum.

“As you know that the other side of the VIP has bucket seats, I think its prudent that we complete the whole stadium and that is not only that, we also intend to put up shade right through,” said Harare Mayor Herbert Gomba in an interview with Chronicle Sport yesterday.

“We hope to finish this project, especially of putting up bucket seats, before the end of the year. All we are doing now is to harness resources for this project and all in all we are looking at about $2,5 million and that is what we are busy with now,” said the Mayor yesterday.

According to Mayor Gomba, Rufaro Stadium will need 25 000 seating buckets.

He said they will also work on the toilets as well as the drainage system so that the Stadium meets expected international standards.

“All these projects are expected to be done and dusted with before the end of the year and we are confident we will meet those timelines. Last week we conducted an inspection of the stadium in the company of the Premier Soccer League chairman Farai Jere and the league chief executive officer Kennedy Ndebele where we appraised them of these plans,” said Mayor Gomba who, unlike his predecessors, appears a mayor intent on making a difference to the city of Harare and has prioritised the improvement of their sports facilities.

Besides the massive facelift at Rufaro Stadium, the Harare City Council will also be working on the abandoned Gwanzura Stadium.