The New Town Sporting Precinct Master Plan shows improvements to cycling, netball, cricket and other sporting facilities. Image: Hobart City Council.
The Hobart City Council has released a statement calling on all candidates in the State Division of Clark as well as all major parties contesting the upcoming Tasmanian state election to commit to funding the New Town Sporting Precinct Master Plan.
Bounded by New Town Road, Creek Road, and St Johns Avenue in New Town, the precinct has sporting facilities including the New Town Oval, Buckingham Bowls Club, Hobart Netball and Sports Centre and the New Town Croquet Club.
The project aims to define future directions for planning, development and management of the precinct, including addressing issues impacting on the functionality of the precinct, and identifying opportunities and priorities to enhance the precinct.
Hobart Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds emphasised the importance of securing funding for this significant project.
“The New Town Sporting Precinct Master Plan represents a crucial investment in our city’s sporting infrastructure,” Cr Reynolds said.
“With its comprehensive improvements, this plan will not only benefit local sporting clubs and associations but also contribute to the health and wellbeing of our residents.”
The master plan was initially endorsed by the council in June 2019. Planned improvements to the precinct include:
- Increasing the number of netball courts by three, including the addition of an indoor show court capable of hosting Australian Netball League matches.
- Enhancing parking facilities, traffic management, and pedestrian safety measures to improve access to the area.
- Upgrading function facilities at New Town Oval and Hobart Netball and Sports Centre.
- Constructing modern changerooms and public toilet facilities, as well as improving storage and clubroom facilities for the New Town Cricket Club.
Southern Tasmanian Netball Association president Alison Lai said the Hobart City Council endorsement of the master plan was a milestone moment following years of effort by many to see the sporting facilities in this area upgraded.
“The construction of the new indoor sports centre will be a game-changer for netball in southern Tasmania and the other sports that currently use or have been hoping to use our existing facilities,” she said.
“We currently deliver Tasmania’s largest netball competition at our Creek Road facility, with all our courts being used at capacity.
“Every week we are fielding new enquiries from people wanting to hire our existing facilities and the new stadium will ensure that we’re able to cater to the increase in teams playing netball across our competitions, and also the growing demand for the availability of indoor courts in Hobart,” she added.
“We will be actively seeking government investment for this work and it’s essential that government prioritise investment into community sporting facilities.
“There is a critical shortage of community sporting facilities in Hobart, and with more than 250,000 people walking through our doors every year, this project is essential to ensure we can continue to provide high quality, welcoming and inclusive sport and recreation opportunities for the community.”
President of Hobart Wheelers/Dirt Devils Cycling Club Justin McMullen said the upgrade would not only help Hobart retain and attract high class cycling events, but also provide invaluable training and safety for children.
“Improving the New Town sporting precinct will help us to teach more kids cycling in a safe environment and develop our future sporting stars,” he said.
“The proposed development will vastly help our club have a home. There’ll be better facilities for storage as well as vastly superior toilet and change facilities which will benefit athletes and patrons.
“In recent times, Hobart’s track has been seen by our national coaches as substandard and they have refused to send their athletes here,” he added.
“Further, the lack of drug testing rooms pretty much rules out us having national and international level events.
“The proposed development, including upgrading of the velodrome, will help us draw higher credentialled athletes to Hobart Bikes & Spikes in December and will allow us to have world level events in track cycling.”
The City Council’s Healthy Hobart Portfolio Chair Cr Will Coats said the successful realisation of the master plan relied on securing funding support from both government and non-government sources.
“We are calling on all Clark candidates and the major parties to prioritise investment in the New Town Sporting Precinct,” he said.
“Together, we can create a vibrant and sustainable sporting hub that benefits our entire community.”
