The Hobart City Council will meet today to consider the findings of a long-awaited assessment into the Macquarie Point stadium, as staff reveal the project has already cost ratepayers more than $170,000 in reviews.
The Tasmanian Planning Commission released its report on the state-significant project last week, recommending the stadium not go ahead.
The council has held serious reservations about the proposal since its inception and, in April, voiced ‘deep disappointment’ with the state government’s handling of the project.
“The council also noted [in April] the city’s significant investment in reviewing the proposal and its process concerns, urging the state government to maintain public trust by adhering to a transparent and objective planning framework,” a council report reads.
To date, the city has engaged several consultants to peer review technical reports, spending $170,721 on expert advice, with another $12,000 spent during the recent hearings process.
In April, council backed independent modelling that found the stadium could generate $178.9 million a year once operational.
But the council has since raised doubts about the state’s ability to fund construction, with the commission warning the stadium would saddle the state with debt reaching $1.8 billion within a decade.
“… This may create a constrained financial environment in which the city must compete for infrastructure expansion grants or loan funding of its own,” today’s meeting papers warn.
An earlier AEC Group analysis found construction would support 385 full-time jobs and add $65.4 million to Hobart’s Gross Regional Product.
Council had also urged the government to weigh findings from economist Nicholas Gruen’s independent review and respond to Planning Institute of Australia concerns about process integrity.
A planning bill that would have fast-tracked approval was shelved after the most recent state election and the government’s dissolution.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff has vowed to press on with the project and has secured the backing of independent MP David O’Byrne in the lower house.
Labor is yet to settle on a position, while the Greens remain opposed.
Speaking at the annual Bill Sorell Sports Luncheon last week, Rockliff said an order to progress the stadium would be put to parliament on November 4.
