Ongoing Perth Arena delays set back opening to May 2012

The troubled development of the Perth Arena is unlikely to see the venue open until May 2012, amid fears that the cost of the venue could reach more than $500 million.
Already $323 million over budget and three years overdue, Western Australia's Auditor-General Colin Murphy has previously released damning criticism of the development, saying there were significant failings in planning of the project.
The 15,000-seat venue was originally supposed to cost $160 million and be finished in 2009.
Delays in the project have also affected income at a new car park adjacent to the site, while City of Perth Chief Executive Frank Edwards said at the time, the delay to the Perth Arena project would also likely affect the council's customer projections.
An independent audit recommends the Department of Housing and Works be investigated for breaching the State Records Act, while lambasting the way the million project was announced, tendered, resourced and run.
Resolutions of building claims from contractor BGC, which they are entitled to make after the previous Western Australian Government rejected a fixed price contract, mean the massive price tag is likely to increase further.
Auditor-General Murphy said that while there was no evidence of deliberate misconduct, there had been incompetence on a grand scale, stating "we did not find any evidence of misconduct but we did find lots of evidence of things that could have been done better.
"There is inadequate documentation to tell who took key decisions and why, and that is one of the major criticisms.
"There will be an investigation to address the record keeping.
"And the way the contract is constructed leaves it open for the builder to make additional claims. He has made claims of more than $50 million and the state now needs to deal with those."
The Auditor-General has also warned that uncertainty over when the project willl finish could see it unused for months after it is opened.
"VenuesWest's research, and advice from the events industry, is that the venue operator needs 12 to 18 months lead time to ensure that the venue is staffed and events are secured.
"If the completion date is not reliable, it will be more challenging for an operator to schedule events, potentially losing valuable operating revenue at an early stage."
Located in Perth's new Northbridge Link precinct, the Perth Arena has been designed to maximise flexibility and will have a curtaining system in the auditorium to reduce the seating mode as required to allow events with between 4,000 and 8,000 patrons to be staged. The Arena will hold 14,500 boxing fans, possible basketball matches, international netball, martial arts tournaments, and national indoor sports championships.