Sydney sporting venues to get $500 million overhaul

Plans for Sydney’s ANZ Stadium to be roofed and for a massive refurbishment of the city’s Moore Park sport and entertainment precinct are reportedly to be unveiled in the coming weeks by the NSW Government.

A report in Sydney newspaper The Sunday Telegraph suggests that the ANZ Stadium (pictured below) will get funding for previously announced $250 million plans for a roof over the venue “solving some of the chronic problems with the venue.”

NSW Sport and Recreation Minister Stuart Ayres told The Sunday Telegraph that the roof will create a unique, climate-controlled atmosphere unmatched anywhere in Australia.

At Sydney’s Moore Park, the Sydney newspaper indicated that a consortium led by Australia’s leading retailer, Gerry Harvey, and advertising guru John Singleton is expected to be the successful tenderer to revamp the Entertainment Quarter and adjacent areas around the Sydney Cricket Ground and Allianz Stadium.

Set to be granted at lease will be granted a long term lease of between 35 and 50 years, the refurbishment will aim to transform the Moore Park precinct  into a state-of-the-art entertainment, events, hospitality and sporting destination.

The Sunday Telegraph reports that, if successful, Harvey and Singleton’s consortium will aim to merge the Entertainment Quarter with the SCG and Allianz Stadium with the plan including the knocking down of walls between the SCG and the retail and hospitality precinct.

Harvey told The Sunday Telegraph “this should be one of the most exciting developments in Australia.

“We want it to deliver a great experience for the community. It won’t happen overnight and it will be done in consultation with everyone - the local residents, the retailers, the NSW Government, the SCG Trust and the Centennial and Moore Park Trust.

“Everyone has an idea on what this precinct should look like. We want to know what they think and deliver on its potential. Its proximity to the airport and to the CBD mean it should be avenue for all Australians, a genuine attraction.

“There should be a mix of modern, state of the art retail and restaurants, as well as a feel for the history of the place. It is time the people of Sydney became excited about this precinct.”

Plans for Allianz Stadium will see it given major overhaul with new eating areas, bars and state of the art technology will be added to the current plans for improved traffic and pedestrian access.

With funding to come from a sport and cultural fund under the recently announced Rebuilding NSW Plan, Minister Ayers is expected to formally unveil the plans within week.

The upgrades for the ANZ Stadium and the Moore Park precinct underpin the NSW Government’s Stadiums Strategy, with Minister Ayres also telling The Sunday Telegraph “as one of the most competitive and densely populated sports markets in the world, Sydney deserves two world-class rectangular Tier 1 stadiums.”

The plan also backs the development of a Tier 2 stadium in western Sydney, with Minister Ayres adding “Western Sydney should also have a high quality Tier 2 facility that can support the needs of its growing population.”

Minister Ayres suggests that new Western Sydney stadium and the ANZ Stadium and Moore Park upgrades should be developed through “a collaboration between stadium operators, private sector and the NSW Government is crucial if we are going to deliver genuinely world-class sporting precincts. This will help end years of ad hoc and low value spending on NSW stadiums.”

However, the Stadium Strategy appears to have been overlooked with a $10 million commitment to upgrading Brookvale Oval.

Excluded from Stadium Strategy when it was launched in 2012, the stadium, which sits it Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s electorate, gained funding commitments from both sides of Federal politics prior to the 2013 election.

15th July 2014 - NSW GOVERNMENT REAFFIRMS PLANS TO BACK MAJOR STADIA

28th May 2014 - PLANS REVEALED FOR $250 MILLION UPGRADE OF SYDNEY’S ALLIANZ STADIUM

9th April 2014 - MOORE PARK ENTERTAINMENT QUARTER UP FOR SALE

2nd April 2014 - ANZ STADIUM ADVANCES PLANS FOR $250 MILLION UPGRADE