Sea Eagles say battle with Warringah Council over hiring Brookvale Oval “reaching flashpoint”
SEA Eagles CEO Joe Kelly says the battle with Warringah Council over Brookvale Oval is now` reaching flashpoint, less than two months from the start of the NRL season.
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SEA Eagles CEO Joe Kelly says the battle with Warringah Council over Brookvale Oval is now reaching flashpoint and that the club has received demands for the hiring of their home ground that are impossible to even contemplate.
The club has declared that they have refused to accept the “ultimatum over Brookvale Oval hiring fees for the coming season.”
“We have proposed a hire fee figure three-times the benchmark being paid by other NRL Clubs using superior suburban grounds, including the offer to maintain the surface at our own cost to ensure it meets NRL standards,” Kelly said.
“But once again any proposal put to council has been quickly dismissed.
“It’s time Warringah Council placed the sporting spectator and Northern Beaches participant’s safety and welfare ahead of their cost recovery approach to Brookvale Oval.
“It’s very apparent that Warringah Council give no consideration to the Club’s community service and goodwill on the northern beaches, not to mention the positive effect of having an NRL team in their backyard.
“We believe that Council are using the Sea Eagles as a cash cow for a venue that is open to the public for no less than 355 days per year.”
Warringah Council say the Sea Eagles are yet to sign a licence for the 2016 NRL season, and are asking that their rent be reduced from $375,000 to $220,000.”
“It costs around $600,000 to maintain the ground and stadium to NRL standards per year, not including depreciation or capital works,” the council said in a statement.
The council said they have returfed approximately 80 per cent of the playing surface at a cost of $48,000 in preparation for the new NRL season and in the coming weeks they say the field will also be top-dressed.
A spokesperson for the council said they are doing everything possible to see the Sea Eagles play at their spiritual home.”.
“This includes exhibiting a proposed booking fee that will allow the Sea Eagles to book for specific matches, rather than the usual full nine months, to ensure they can always play at Brookvale even if negotiations on a lease are not fruitful,” the spokesperson said.
But the Sea Eagles say that recently drafted casual hiring arrangement would balloon the Brookvale Oval hire fee to between $50,000 and $60,000 per game.
They say that only applies to NRL teams, may be discriminatory and the club has referred this matter to their legal representatives.
The Sea Eagles say they use Brookvale Oval for 10 games per season and a weekly captain’s run and that the rest of the year it is open to the community for recreational use.
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