The majority of Clarence residents have voted in favour of building an AFL high-performance centre within the Rosny Parklands, an elector poll has revealed.
According to the results released on Friday, 14,236 voters (51.39%) support the development in the parklands, while 13,464 voters (48.61%) do not.
In a statement to Pulse, Clarence Mayor Brendan Blomeley said the result showed the community was “more or less split down the middle” and their views “closely mirrored” the different opinions held by councillors.
“What is clear is of the two options, having the centre solely located in the Rosny Parklands is the community’s preference,” he said.
“It also shows that this is a complex issue and one which some people see the potential of and others have concerns with.”
The ‘Save Rosny Parks’ group initiated the month-long poll earlier this year in an attempt to prove to the Clarence City Council that there was no support for the $70 million facility.
It came at a cost of $200,000 to ratepayers and resulted in a subsequent rate increase of 0.3%.
A total of 28,482 postal ballot packs were returned during the polling period and 27,894 ballot papers were admitted to the count, the Tasmanian Electoral Commission said.
62.8% of the 45,351 eligible electors took part.
The second question, which asked if the facility should spread to Charles Hand Park, received 17,846 votes (64.83%) against and 9,681 (35.17%) for.
The high-performance centre will include a football and administration building, indoor training area, strength and conditioning areas, gender-neutral locker rooms, medical facilities, wet recovery facilities, office spaces and meeting rooms.
The project also involves the construction of a full-sized oval with MCG dimensions and an additional grassed training area, as well as approximately 150 dedicated car spaces.
The timeline for the project includes the appointment of a consultant in August 2024, the submission of a functional design brief in July 2024 and planning approval by November 2025.
Construction is scheduled to begin in February 2026 and be completed by October 2027.
