Sports buildings plan secrecy

by Shane Sody and John Bridgland

The Adelaide City Council has invoked secrecy provisions in the Local Government Act to prevent you reading a report about proposed ratepayer funding for sports building replacements in your Park Lands.

The Council is under pressure to contribute funding towards replacements for at least some of the ageing sports buildings dotted all over your Park Lands.

Many of the schools and sports clubs that use these buildings are lobbying to get permission for larger new buildings that would contain private function rooms, storage facilities, and more.

In two cases, the clubs have secured funding from the State Government and want to start building, but the City Council has not yet decided how much ratepayer funding (if any) it should provide, nor any size or scope limits on new buildings.

These are the three key sites where decisions are likely to be made in coming months:

Mary Lee Park (Park 27B) - an old building used by West Adelaide (Hellas) soccer club. A $2.01m Office of Recreation, Sport and Racing grant was provided in 2023, and the Council also pledged $500,000. But it’s not enough to provide what the club wants.

Golden Wattle Park /Mirnu Wirra (Park 21 West) - an old building used by Adelaide Lutheran Sports and Recreation Association. A State Government grant of $1.55 million has been made available to the ALSRA but this is insufficient to complete the building that the Association wants.

Blue Gum Park / Kurangga (Park 20). There are several old buildings in this Park used by Pulteney Grammar School and Adelaide Harriers Athletics Club. Unlike other park lands lessees, the school proposes to pay the full cost of a replacement building, but will, of course, want to play a major role in determining the new building’s siting, design and scale.

Need for secrecy?

At a City Council meeting on 10 September 2024, the Council considered a proposed “Park Lands Community Buildings (Sport and Recreation) Policy and Investment Plan”.

The Plan was not included in the public agenda papers, because the Council classified the proposed Plan as commercial-in-confidence. Nevertheless, it’s understood that the Plan proposed a 10-year prioritised schedule of council spending for leased, Park Lands sports buildings.

The question remains: Why does the Council claim that plans for your Open, Green, Public Park Lands should be hidden under the heading of “commercial-in-confidence’’?

For a deeper dive into the murky waters of the Council’s sports club building dilemma, see this 5-page analysis by author John Bridgland:

John Bridgland

Background

There are dozens of sports buildings dotted around your Park Lands, and there is an increased demand from women and girls to play sport in your Park Lands.

However, some of the old buildings are not equipped with suitable modern facilities or even female change rooms or toilets. There’s no doubt that some of these decades-old buildings are in need of refurbishment, repair, or replacement.

Just some of the sports buildings dotted about your Adelaide Park Lands.