A mysterious Google Maps listing for the proposed Macquarie Point stadium has appeared online, surprising Tasmanians as the $1.13 billion project still awaits parliamentary approval.
The listing, which emerged in recent weeks at 6 Evans St in Hobart, links to the Macquarie Point Development website and has already attracted satirical reviews.
The stadium listing has created excitement in the ‘Yes AFL Team, Yes Stadium’ Facebook group, which has over 23,000 members.
“Omg omg omg!!!! True!!! It’s on google maps!!!” wrote one commenter.
“It’s getting real now, anyone else want to have a look go to maps type in Mac Point Stadium and up it comes. So many venues for patrons it will make Hobart come alive,” another wrote.
A Macquarie Point Development Corporation spokesperson confirmed to Pulse that neither the organisation nor the government created the map entry.
“MPDC was unaware of the reference,” they said.
Meanwhile, the actual stadium project is inching towards a crucial parliamentary order on November 4, despite the Tasmanian Planning Commission recommending against the stadium’s construction..
Planning Minister Kerry Vincent acknowledged the commission’s report while defending the project on Friday.
“It highlighted a lot of things that many individuals probably hadn’t thought about involved with the stadium and I thank them for their report,” Vincent said.
“But it also highlighted a lot of opportunities that flow on from a stadium of this size.”
When questioned about the possibility of parliament rejecting the proposal, Vincent was definitive.
“We are building a stadium,” he said.
Labor Leader Josh Willie has pledged his party’s support, calling it “a once in a generation opportunity that can’t be missed.”
The project requires support from independent members in the Upper House to proceed, with the government actively briefing interested MPs ahead of the November order.
