Social legacy and community focus: Government to implement infrastructure plan for Santiago 2023
The Pan American and Parapan American Games are set to come to 16 Chilean municipalities: 11 in the Metropolitan region and 5 in the Valparaíso region. There will be a focus on roadways, connecting citizens with high performance sports, and athletics centers that will also be used by local people. The investment in public infrastructure will total US$170 million.
With three years to go until the Pan American and Parapan American Games come to Chile, this morning the Government unveiled the infrastructure plan that it will implement for Santiago 2023. The unveiling was led by Sports Minister and Santiago 2023 Corporation President Cecilia Pérez, who was accompanied by Chile’s Olympic Committee President, Miguel Ángel Mujica; the Executive Director of the Corporation, Felipe de Pablo; Sports Undersecretary Andrés Otero; the President of the Chilean Paralympic Committee, Ricardo Elizalde; and the Sports Ministry’s Infrastructure Division Chief, Ernesto Urdangarín.
The plan covers a total of 16 municipalities. Of these 11 will be in the Metropolitan region, including Ñuñoa, Peñalolén, Santiago, Lo Espejo, Cerrillos, San Bernardo, San Ramón, Las Condes and Pudahuel, and five in the Valparaíso region - Viña del Mar, Valparaíso, Quillota, Los Andes and Algarrobo. Two municipalities have yet to be determined, where Choose to Live Healthily Centers will be built.
The investment in infrastructure will total US$170 million. This will include a Pan American Corridor that will stretch over 20 kilometers, connecting the Pan American Village in Cerrillos to three athletics venues. This will mean that the games will leave behind a legacy of over 100 hectares of green space for the community between Parque O’Higgins, the National Stadium sports venue and the Peñalolén sports venue.
Santiago 2023 Corporation President Cecilia Pérez highlighted that, “in order to reach our goal of strengthening a culture of healthy lifestyles and engaging in physical activity, it is important for high performance athletes to engage with our communities.”
“This infrastructure plan has a social community focus. Its legacy will be 100 hectares of green areas; sports venues at the National Stadium and in the community of Peñalolén; the construction of two new Choose to Live Healthily Centers; a Pan American corridor that will be over 20 kilometers long; and the Cerrillos Pan American Village,” Minister Pérez explained.
In Santiago, the focus will be on the Pan American Corridor, which stretches from the Pan American Village in Cerrillos, through Parque O’Higgins and the National Stadium sports venue to the Peñalolén sports venue. The entire corridor has an urban planning system that includes sports areas, highways, roadways and transportation.
Head of Infrastructure for the games, Ernesto Urdangarín, emphasized that all of these structures will be built to relate harmoniously with the city and its roadways. “The strategy starts with understanding the facilities and green areas that are available to incorporate into the highway and roadway network as well as the metro and public transportation system. The goal of this plan is for more people, families and the community to get involved with sports,” he explained.
“We are confident and optimistic because Santiago 2023 will be a historic event. We appreciate the government’s commitment, which has taken the form of the work of the Sports Ministry, National Sports Institute and the entire corporation. We are now a single team working on the Pan American Games,” Miguel Ángel Mujica explained.
Felipe De Pablo highlighted the work that has been done: “This infrastructure plan establishes a very demanding roadmap and work plan. We are taking on the challenge of working together full speed ahead to host the largest athletic mega event ever held in Chile.”
In addition to regular infrastructure, four Choose to Live Healthily Centers will host the Pan American and Parapan American Games. These community centers will align with international standards in a modular fashion in terms of both capacity and competition surface area.
The Chilean government and Santiago 2023 Corporation are thus taking a significant step towards hosting unforgettable Pan American and Parapan American Games. They will provide first-rate infrastructure for our high performance athletes and will leave a social legacy for the citizens, which is another push towards reaching the goal of having five million athletes in Chile by 2023.