Work set to start at Perth stadium

The new Perth Stadium has reached another important milestone with the start of work to prepare the site for construction of Perth Stadium and the surrounding sports precinct.

The pre-construction works involve extensive ground improvement work that will be carried out over the next 18 months by Western Australian-based consortium Ertech Keller Joint Venture.

Western Australian Premier Colin Barnett and Sport and Recreation Minister Terry Waldron launched the pre-construction site works this morning, with an official sod-turning ceremony attended by WA representatives from the sporting codes who will use the stadium.

The launch took place on land that will become home to the south-west edge of the seating bowl of the stadium.

Premier Barnett said the work was a key step in the construction of a 60,000 seat, world-class stadium and sports precinct in time for the start of the 2018 AFL season, stating

"this is an exciting milestone in the State's sporting history. Today signals the start of activity to transform the Burswood site into a sporting focal point for all West Australians to enjoy.

"The pre-construction site works will treat the underlying ground conditions for the stadium, bus hub and pedestrian area for the new train station.

"Over the coming weeks, the site will be prepared with site offices installed, fencing erected and machinery mobilised so the work can get under way to compact the ground."

Premier Barnett said the stadium would be built in conjunction with a private company under a Design-Build-Finance-Maintain (DBFM) model, helping to spread some of the costs over 25 years, adding "the DBFM model minimises risks to taxpayers and has a strong track record of delivering high-quality assets on time and within budget.

"The private company designs, builds, raises the finance, and then maintains the stadium - so maintenance costs are addressed in advance, which helps spread out a big proportion of the costs over the next 25 years."

Minister Waldron said three world-class consortia had been short-listed to bid for the design, construction and maintenance of the stadium and sports precinct, advising that the consortia would soon receive the Stadium Project Brief, outlining the design, functional and technical requirements.

Minister Waldron concluded "the development of the project brief has involved a wide range of stakeholders including all the sporting bodies that will use the stadium, plus the end users - the sports fans themselves.

"The three respondents will have five months to prepare a fully priced bid based on their concept design, and construction and maintenance plans. The successful consortium will be announced in June 2014."

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