Council awards $1m for Shepparton stadium design

At the May meeting, councillors Fern Summer and Sam Spinks voted against the motion to accept the tender.

“I cannot support this motion, $1 million can do a lot for the community,” Cr Spinks said, explaining that she had not had enough time to consider the detail or the community appetite for a project with the scale and cost proposed.

Cr Spinks said while rejuvenation of the sports stadium on Numurkah Rd had been a priority for decades, she was concerned the grand scale seemed to prioritise the needs of outsiders ahead of locals by developing a facility to attract major events and sporting competitions.

Cr Summer also baulked at the price tag for the design work.

“As it stands, I think it is just too much money for a design,” she said.

The remaining seven councillors supported accepting the tender, although Cr Seema Abdullah expressed disappointment that no local firm had bid for the design work and also said the cost seemed excessive.

“Shepparton’s growing reputation as the regional sporting events capital of Australia does call for an upgrade of its existing sports centre,” she said.

“It is required to make the project shovel ready so we can lobby hard for funding.”

Cr Greg James and Cr Rob Priestly said while it was a lot of money, it was in proportion to the scale of the project.

“It is not just about some basketball courts, this is a visionary project for our city,” Cr Priestly said.

Cr Shane Sali agreed, saying it was in keeping with normal commercial design costs for projects on this scale.

“This is next level. It is a genuine game changer and arguably the first step and the most important step in getting this project achieved,” he said.

Mayor Kim O’Keeffe said the new facility would have a 3000-seat show court for sport and events.

“It was built in 1972 and it still looks like 1972,” she said.

“We need to complete the Sports City project and the stadium and events centre is the final piece in the puzzle.”

The motion was carried 7-2.