Adelaide Football Club

The Hon. F. PANGALLO (14:50): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, representing the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government, questions regarding the Adelaide Aquatic Centre and the Adelaide Football Club.

Leave granted.

The Hon. F. PANGALLO: It has been widely reported that the Adelaide Football Club is looking at relocating from its West Lakes headquarters to sites in the Adelaide Parklands, including an area near the Adelaide Zoo and the Adelaide Aquatic Centre, which the City of Adelaide reports loses $7,000 a year and which requires urgent upgrades. The council says it cannot afford to keep bailing it out.

Plans seem to be well advanced to have the aquatics centre the club's preferred site, which would involve its demolition, along with taking over the adjoining park and football oval currently leased to Blackfriars Priory School. The matter was raised by North Adelaide residents last night, who have written to their local member, the Hon. Rachel Sanderson, posing a series of questions about the aquatic centre's future and rumours surrounding the Crows' interest. My questions are:

1. Has the Adelaide Football Club submitted a proposal or made representations to the government and the City of Adelaide that it wishes to take over the site, and how far advanced are those negotiations?

2. Are there implications or conditions that will need to be met under existing laws governing the Parklands for any new redevelopment in the Parklands, known as Park 2?

3. Would there be a requirement for tenders to be called for any future use or redevelopment of the site?

4. Should any development proceed and the centre be demolished, the city would no longer have aquatic facilities for the public. Does the government see a need to have aquatic facilities, and could there be an opportunity to have this incorporated in any future development?

5. What would happen to the lease signed by Blackfriars Priory School only last year?

6. Should the Adelaide Football Club move to the site and redevelop it, would it be required to pay for all the works?

7. Will the Adelaide Football Club be gifted the land or would it pay a nominal or peppercorn lease payment?

8. Has the club indicated that it will be seeking financial assistance either in the form of loans or grants from the state and/or federal government to finance the project?

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) (14:53): I thank the honourable member for his explanation and very extensive list of questions. I suspect we got to double figures, I'm not sure. There was certainly a range of issues canvassed in those questions—

The Hon. F. Pangallo: Eight.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: Eight, he says; there were eight, so we didn't quite get to double figures, but there were a large number of questions. I will be very happy to take them on notice and refer them to my good friend and colleague, minister Stephan Knoll, in another place.