Council vote for community consultation over Football Park’s future causes Crows Thebarton delay

Adelaide’s dream of relocating to Thebarton Oval has hit a further delay after a narrow vote in the local council.

Adelaide Football Club’s dream of relocating to Thebarton Oval has hit a further two-month delay, with the City of Charles Sturt council voting 8-6 in favour of updated community consultation over the future of Football Park.

The SANFL are currently seeking a long-term lease of the land in the event that Adelaide relocate their home grounds to Thebarton.

If granted a licence, the league plans to build a new $22.6m administration and training centre to use the ground for state junior, First Nations and multicultural programs.

The Adelaide Football Club’s dream of relocating to Thebarton Oval has hit a further two month delay. Picture: City Collective

However, if the SANFL can’t obtain tenure of Football Park, they would remain at Thebarton until the expiration of their existing lease in 2031.

A council report says this would effectively leave the clubs gridlocked as the Crows can’t start building at Thebarton until the SANFL leave.

Charles Sturt Council Mayor Angela Evans

Charles Sturt mayor Angela Evans said she expected the consultation report to “come back at the end of June”, causing further delays to the project the Crows had once hoped to have completed by mid-2026.

“That’s how long this will take – a good amount of time for people to respond and then for the report to come back to council,” Ms Evans told FIVEAA.

“I think what we need to do is make sure that we get a really broad representation of people’s views on it. If people are really keen to have that space used by the SANFL, then they need to be involved in this upcoming community conversation. It’s actually really, really important that they’re represented here.

“Let’s get on with this project.”

The City of Charles Sturt council’s vote for another round of community consultation over the future of Football Park has created a gridlock where neither the Crows or the SANFL can move from their current locations. Picture: Supplied

“At the conclusion of this consultation, a report will be presented to council, alongside the proposal from the SANFL to consider, among potential options, a non-exclusive licence for Football Park,” Ms Evans told the Advertiser.

“I am pleased to continue to progress this issue and to invite our whole community to engage with us.

“This issue is a matter of community interest, not only in our Charles Sturt area, but it has significance across our whole state.”

It comes as a slight reprieve for SANFL and footy fans alike after council previously voted against awarding a licence to the state league earlier this month.

The SANFL are currently seeking a long-term lease of Football Park in the event that Adelaide relocate their home grounds to Thebarton: City of Charles Sturt

Treasurer and local member Stephen Mullighan, who addressed council’s mid-April meeting on behalf of the SANFL, expected they would resolve to support the project so long as they could negotiate more open space.

Instead, Charles Sturt council knocked it back and requested a meeting with Planning Minister Nick Champion hoping to obtain funding toward the purchase of additional land.

However, Mr Champion declined the funding request.

Mr Mullighan said the state league’s proposal would turn Football Park from a mainly locked up training venue into a community-focused site, similar to Unley Oval.

“This is holding up not only a good, local outcome … but also a really significant, once-in-a-generation investment that the Crows are trying to deliver,” he said.

“The SANFL have worked so hard for so long in partnership with council staff to address all of the community concerns when it comes to oval access, lighting and upkeep.

“That’s why it was so surprising to see the spanner thrown in the works.”