AHA SA boss Ian Horne says the high concentration of hotels and proximity to Adelaide Oval makes North Tce a perfect location for an AFL quarantine hub
The AFL has asked state and territory governments to recommend hotels with 600 rooms for its quarantine hubs model. The state’s peak hotels group says one city street could do this.
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North Terrace could be the centrepiece of an Adelaide quarantine hub for AFL footballers according to Australian Hotels Association South Australia boss Ian Horne, who says the state must make a play to host one.
The head of the state’s peak hotels body told The Advertiser the high concentration of hotels on the city street, and its proximity to the Adelaide Oval and other facilities, meant the area could host numerous AFL teams.
“No question, we could host that sort of thing 10 times over,” he said.
“We probably have in the CBD and the surrounding metropolitan area when it comes to four or five star hotels about 10,000 rooms available.
“There is no shortage of rooms and easily in the CBD we could accommodate that (the AFL’s request) many times over.”
The AFL has begun sounding out potential locations for hubs to locate players in quarantined conditions in an attempt to restart the 2020 AFL season.
AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan has written to Premier Steven Marshall to determine whether SA could be one of these up to three hubs.
Other regions and cities up for consideration by the AFL include Melbourne, Geelong, Darwin, Perth, Sydney, Hobart, Launceston, Southeast Queensland and WA’s Swan Valley.
In his letter to state and territory leaders outlining the plan Mr McLachlan said clubs would be split into various villages within each hub.
Each village would consist of a hotel solely dedicated to the AFL industry to enable the control of external people entering, ideally based on extensive grounds such as a golf resort or winery.
Mr McLachlan has requested state and territory leaders “recommend some suitable properties at which to establish villages with approximately 600 rooms per night for eight weeks”.
No hotel in Adelaide or wider SA has that capacity but Mr Horne saidthe concentration of hotels on North Tce, and nearby, meant the city could host such an hub in that area.
“We’ve accommodated international space conventions, astronautic conventions, medical conventions,” he said.
“We absolutely have the capacity … you have a multitude of hotels and then a short walk across the bridge to Adelaide Oval.”
Adelaide’s InterContinental, which overlooks Adelaide Oval, has 367 rooms and could be supplemented by nearby hotels on North Tce such as the Stamford (335 rooms), the Playford (182), the Mercure (181) and even the soon to be opened Casino hotel (120) depending on timing.
Mr Horne said on top of the Adelaide Oval for training there were other nearby facilities that could be used by AFL clubs.
“We have the Convention Centre on North Tce that is largely sitting dormant,” he said.
“That could be used as a training facility or a meeting facility, you have Exhibition Hall which could be used.”
The Hilton (374 rooms) is temporarily closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic but has experience in hosting competitors for the Tour Down Under cycling race, while the Pullman (308) in Hindmarsh Square is hosting quarantined people who returned on the mercy flight from India.
Away from the CBD, the Stamford Grand and Oaks Plaza at Glenelg have 220 and 199 rooms respectively.
The big challenge for Adelaide would be that none of these hotels would allow personnel to move around more freely in a quarantined zone without public interaction – as a golf resort or winery could.
But Mr Horne said some creative ideas could be worked out.
“The trick is putting it together but when there is a will there is a way and I would certainly be actively encouraging South Australia to put its hand up,” he said.
The Advertiser has contacted the State Government for comment.
