Premier Jeremy Rockliff has dismissed claims that Hobart’s Macquarie Point Stadium is on “shaky ground” – literally – after a 2015 engineer’s report highlighting challenges at the site resurfaced.
The Douglas Partners report says the stadium would need to be built on concrete pylons around 18m tall due to unstable soil at the site.
Labour treasury spokesperson Dr Shane Broad argues that the report shows “enormous engineering challenges” that will significantly increase costs.
“The [report] highlights a host of significant engineering challenges across the site which will make building the roofed stadium Jeremy Rockliff has promised hideously expensive,” Broad says.
“The engineers that I’ve been speaking to just talk about how difficult it will be to build anything on this site, let alone a massive stadium with a roof.”
“The engineering just by itself is going to blow the $715 million out of the water.”
However, The Premier has dismissed concerns and insists that all engineering works have been factored into the budget and rejects claims that the report raises doubts about the stability of the site.
“We’re factored in all the challenges and we’ve got contingency, of course and I’m excited about the build,” Rockliff said.
