Tasmania's most controversial infrastructure project since the Gunns Pulp Mill reached a significant milestone on Wednesday.
The Australian Government officially accepted the Tasmanian Government's Macquarie Point precinct plan.
Fans of the Tasmanian Devils Australian Rules Football Club will recognise the state and federal government's pulling in the same direction, which is a crucial step in the stadium's development.
The Federal government uses careful language and refers to it as a 'precinct plan' because it hopes to distance itself from the flak the Rockliff government is copping from the 'no stadium' people. Federal Minister for Infrastructure Catherine King says it is a 'multipurpose stadium'. Of course, if the Macquarie Point precinct is used for entertainment, round ball football and cricket, as well as the Hobart home of the Devils, the multi-millions of dollars allocated for the project will be more palatable to Tasmanians, well, that is the theory I am sure.
The stadium proposal is now in the hands of the Tasmanian Planning Commission for further assessment.
The Rockliff government has this project slated as a 'Project of State Significance.' They hope allocating it as such will carry the necessary weight to overcome any hurdles to green light its construction.
The federal government and Mr Rockliff's government are careful to point out that the redevelopment of Macquarie Point is not just about sports infrastructure. They say the main aim of the 'precinct' is to revitalise the area through urban renewal.
Ms King says the precinct will incorporate housing, transport options, and wharf redevelopment. The federal government has strongly emphasised that the precinct includes a housing plan, which even the harshest critics should support.
Most Tasmanians will be excited about making the area a hub for cultural and arts events. Sceptical Tasmanians question whether the projections of the project generating significant financial returns both during construction and after are accurate.
In a cost-of-living crisis, and with our health system in a mess, spending millions of dollars on this project has many up in arms.
The federal and state governments hope Tasmanians will come with them and believe the precinct will succeed.
Unlike the Pulp Mill, this project will be built no matter the amount of protest. The state government thinks that all the negativity will be forgotten once the Devils run onto the field and big touring acts are playing at the stadium. Build it, and they will come. That seems to be the plan. There is no turning back.
Craig Thomson is the Editor of The Examiner.
COMMENT
Dale Newman
Build it and who exactly will come? At what price will they come? How often will they come? When anyone embarks upon a business venture these are the most basic questions that MUST have answers, reasonable, rational answers, otherwise the idea is just a vainglorious thought bubble. Answers to these questions, and others besides, have to be provided especially given its OUR money that is being used. I am a supporter of the principle of “build it and they will come” but ONLY after these questions are fully answered and the workings for the answers are FULLY disclosed. And if the Premier is so adamant that this is exactly what Tasmania needs in this time of eye watering debt, then he must have those calculations right at his fingertips. Right? Of course he wouldn’t be so completely reckless to spend our money just on a “feeling” would he? He wouldn’t run his farm in such a way would he? He wouldn’t expect other businesses like, say, the Spirit ships to be run this way would he? And NO Mark Williams and your patronising comment, “we” up-in-arms types do not protest just for the sake of it, “we” just want answers to the most simple questions, like, how do YOU know this will transform (presumably for good) the Hobart waterfront? And what do you mean it will be “huge” for the whole state? Huge meaning what exactly? I’m sorry but no one can spend such vast sums of taxpayer monies on the basis of “huge”.
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