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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-05-26 Daily Xml
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State Basketball Centre

Mr COWDREY (Colton) (14:25): My question is to the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport. Can the minister please update the house on how the Marshall Liberal government is creating job opportunities with the new home of basketball at Wayville?

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD (Gibson—Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (14:26): I thank the member for his question. Can I say that basketball is booming at the moment. Participation is up, be it pick-up games, social games in the park, three-on-three games, inclusive basketball, wheelchair basketball, mini basketball, youth or senior organised competitions.

The sport has never been stronger. That is why South Australian basketball players and fans are cheering at the news that they will soon have a new home for basketball with a $15 million investment by the Marshall Liberal government. I want to take some time out to elaborate on this because this announcement is a slam dunk.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD: They love it; they are ready for more. It is a slam dunk for basketball and it is a massive score to assist the sport so they can rebound from years of neglect from those opposite.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD: You can see what I am doing here, can't you? In fact, people may say the opposition's support for basketball was a basket case when they were in government; in fact, it was probably more a bunch of dribble on their behalf. Maybe it was even completely foul, but that has all changed under the Marshall government. We are not going to pass up on a good opportunity here. We will work overtime to deliver this project and will get basketball back in the zone.

This is a good project and you can see why the sport is creating such a hoopla over our support for basketball. Having a new purpose-built facility centrally based at the Wayville showground will be a massive boost for the sport and create more opportunities for grassroots to community, high performance and the elite level as well. The new centre will become the headquarters for Basketball SA, country basketball, SA wheelchair basketball and the Adelaide Lightning as well.

The project will add four additional courts and create a show court, seating around 1,600. The new facility will cater for the community through the high-performance basketball and seed local and district, state and national league teams training at this venue. The development will allow Basketball SA to expand and have local and country tournaments, which will be a great outcome, as well as their high-performance programs. This will be a huge payoff for basketball fans. Adelaide has been calling out for this for a long period of time and its ability to work with country basketball, as well, will be outstanding.

What it also shows is that our government has worked hard to steer us through COVID and then rebound and we are now open for sporting business. This smart and savvy investment will be a big boost for the local economy. It will create 64 jobs in the process of construction and continue our great job-creating legacy as a government here in South Australia.

The project will also enable Basketball SA to attract and host national championships and showcase this facility to the rest of Australia. Bringing these events to South Australia will not only be great for basketball but fantastic for our economy, as well, and will bring people from all over the country to stay in hotels and to stay at the caravan park there at the Adelaide Showground, to eat in our restaurants and boost jobs as well. Speaking of the Showground, the collaboration here has been outstanding. Of course, this facility will be used during the Royal Show, as well, so it is a project that is a win-win for the entire community.

It is all part of our state sports infrastructure plan. There are other projects that we are delivering as we take South Australia into a golden sporting era: $15 million for the home of basketball, $45 million for the upgrade of Hindmarsh Stadium, $44 million for the upgrade of Memorial Drive, more than $20 million towards a state centre of football, $12 million for the upgrade of Netball SA Stadium, $5 million of investment towards Thebarton Oval and $6 million into the Athletics Stadium. This is a key project for grassroots sports.

There is also $35 million for grassroots sports and we ask them to apply for that. We will have a $24 million announcement coming very shortly for those grassroots sports, but it is another part of how we are creating jobs and building what truly matters for South Australia.

Ms Cook interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Hurtle Vale is called to order.

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