Vol. 20 18 No. No. 2 27 Vol.
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KEEN TO COMPETE: Wimmera Kart Racing Club member Darcie Landrigan is among karters gearing up for round four of the Victorian Country Series at Dooen Raceway on Sunday. Club leaders have encouraged Wimmera people to attend the event, which starts with a practice day on Saturday. Story, page 39. Picture: PAUL CARRACHER
Stadium angst A
BY SARAH SCULLY
community group pushing a Horsham West option for a new multi-use indoor sports stadium will seek an audience with Sports Minister John Eren following Horsham Rural City Council’s ‘failure to see the bigger picture’.
The group – spearheaded by former Horsham councillors Sue Exell, Kevin Dellar, Robin Barber and businesswoman Di Bell – believes the council’s decision to green light a McBryde Street location is shortsighted and not in the best interests of the region. Mrs Exell said group members were
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shocked by the council’s decision last week to endorse a project control group’s recommendation for the McBryde Street site, which includes Horsham Basketball Stadium and the northern portion of Horsham Showground. “It just doesn’t make sense,” she said. “Horsham is a regional city, we need to be thinking like one. We need to provide indoor and outdoor facilities that can be used by the whole region. “We got a good hearing from Crs David Grimble and John Robinson on the issue. They argued more information is needed to make the best decision.
“As for the others, all our arguments keep falling on deaf ears. I do not know why they won’t listen. “The council needs to look at the bigger picture.” The group is pushing for a Horsham West alternative for the proposed stadium, likely to cost between $8-million and $10-million. “There are two options,” Mrs Exell said. “The council could buy vacant farm land at Jenkinson Road and start from scratch, or a Horsham College site is also offering land,” she said. “Horsham West is the number one growth area in the city. It says so in council documents. But there are no
sports facilities there. In time, they will need sports facilities in that area. “It might be cheaper to build it at the showground in the short term, but not in the long term. “We don’t want the council to have to throw good money after bad. “We need an independent expert to look at it, because if the stadium was built at the college it could be used all day, every day. You can’t do that at the showground.” Mrs Exell said the McBryde Street site had limited potential for further development and was in a high floodrisk area. “I can’t understand why the council can’t see how much flooding will
be an issue,” she said. “The showground site is partial to flooding. You can’t build up parking bays or outside courts the way you can a stadium. “Parking bays might be able to cope with a flood going over the top, but courts have specialised surfaces and floods will wreck them.” Mrs Exell said community response to closing McBryde Street could make or break the project. “That is a major road the council is looking to close down,” she said. “How will it affect businesses? People going to work at the hospital? Parents dropping their children at St Brigid’s College? Continued page 3
• Leaders unite to voice bypass concerns • Kindergartens to close • Football-netball action
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