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🇦🇺 Australia /Sports

‘Not value for money’: ACT scraps plans for Tuggeranong ice sports facility

From ABC Australia · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • The ACT government has abandoned plans for a Tuggeranong ice sports facility after an evaluation identified unacceptable risks and insufficient value for money.
  • The proposed Canberra Arena would have included two international-standard ice sheets and received a committed government contribution of $16.265 million.
  • The funding will instead support other sporting infrastructure projects in Tuggeranong, with local clubs invited to identify priorities.

Plans for a major ice sports facility in Tuggeranong have been scrapped after the ACT government rejected an updated proposal as too risky and poor value for money.

The proposed Canberra Arena was designed to include two international-standard ice sheets for figure skating, ice hockey, broomball and speed skating. The facility was also intended to provide a new training and competition venue for local teams, including the Canberra Brave, which has used a temporary rink at the Australian Institute of Sport in recent years.

did not represent value for money for the territory

· Chris SteelThe ACT sports minister described the finding of the government’s evaluation.

Sports Minister Chris Steel said the government had held extensive discussions with the project’s advocates but could not agree on a way forward at the Tuggeranong site. He said the latest proposal sought more than twice the territory’s planned contribution, one of the factors behind the decision to reject it.

“Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to find a way forward with the partners Cruachan and Pelligra to build, maintain and operate this facility in Tuggeranong,” Steel said. The project had been promised by ACT Labor during its 2016 election campaign, and its planned completion date had at one point been listed as 2025.

Unfortunately, we haven't been able to find a way forward with the partners Cruachan and Pelligra to build, maintain and operate this facility in Tuggeranong.

· Chris SteelSteel explained why the proposed facility would not proceed.

The territory had committed $16.265 million toward a project once estimated at about $70 million. The remaining funding was expected to come from Cruachan Investments and Pelligra Holdings, which were to build, own, operate and maintain the arena.

Steel said the committed money would instead be spent dollar for dollar on upgrades to other sporting infrastructure in Tuggeranong. Sporting clubs have been asked to complete a survey about their needs, which will help determine how the funds are allocated. Debate over a dedicated ice sports venue continues.

This investment will not be lost for Tuggeranong. The investment will go back into Tuggeranong to improve sporting infrastructure.

· Chris SteelSteel said the committed funding would be redirected to other local sports projects.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Australia in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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