Media Release
18 September 2024
Our Place spokesperson Roland Browne has described the latest plans for Macquarie Point stadium as terrifying.
“We predicted it would blow out on cost and even before they start building, it’s gone up 8%—and it won’t be the last time or the biggest blowout. It’s just the beginning of a growing nightmare of debt.
“The government hasn’t turned a shovel of dirt and the cost is already blowing out from Jeremy ‘Not One Red Cent More’ Rockliff’s $715 million to now $775 million—an increase of $60 million worth of fewer nurses, teachers and homes for Tasmanians.
“And when we add in: kitchen and food and beverage fit outs ($14.3 m), audio visual services such as TVs ($26.3 m); LED ribbon advertising ($7.8 m) and CCTV, PA system ($6.8 m) it totals $830.2 million. See page 17 KPMG analysis at Appendix G.
“The massive stadium debt is only going to get a lot, lot worse and Tasmanians are already paying for it all with worsening health, education and housing outcomes in consequence of Michael ‘Jetty’ Ferguson’s ‘efficiency dividend’. Look out next for the coming stadium taxes: with increased land tax, tax on rates, and increased payroll tax to pay for this catastrophe.
“What is even worse, is that the government has not released the quantity surveyor’s report which would tell us more about likely cost blowouts. What the hell are they hiding?
“Not only that, but we now have a plan for three storeys of underground car parking. Who is going to pay the countless millions for the major new road around the Cenotaph? You guessed it —Tasmanians again with their jobs and the coming stadium taxes.
“Why should people accept ‘an event travel behaviour campaign’ where people wanting to travel over the Tasman Bridge will need to divert to the Bowen Bridge? Is the government serious? And this is just for the ‘base case’. For larger events it gets much worse with car numbers exceeding the capacity of the Tasman Bridge and the Brooker Highway (page 31 of Appendix N). Travel time will be up to 14 minutes to get from Rosny Hill to the Brooker Hwy. And that assumes no breakdowns or other incidents. It is a recipe for congestion and conflict.
“Where is a politician in the Liberal or Labor parties with the guts to say this is a madness that has to stop?”