Malvern East sport stadium bill balloons to $44 million

A new sports stadium in Malvern East has been slammed by residents as a waste of money, with the cost of the project ballooning to more than $44m.

Malvern East residents are concerned about the amount of money being spent on a stadium. Picture: Sarah Matray

The cost of Stonnington Council's new sport stadium has ballooned to more than $44m and furious residents have slammed the project as a waste of money.

Early costs put the build at $25m when the project was announced in 2016, and Dean Hurlston of Malvern East, an avid campaigner against the four-court stadium planned for Percy Treyvaud Memorial Park, said he was “incredibly concerned”.

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A number of high cost council projects were currently underway, including its $60m Cato St redevelopment, he said, prompting him to launch the Residents Voices Stonnington Facebook group as a platform for people to discuss concerns about council spending.

“What we’re trying to say is the level of spending in Stonnington, of which the stadium is an issue, has got to slow down and stop,” Mr Hurlston said.

Denise Wallish of Malvern East said the stadium project money could have been spent upgrading the municipality’s parks, and said it was important the council got value for money on its projects.

Malvern East residents have fought to stop the stadium being built since it was announced in 2016, arguing it would impact the Stonnington’s amenity, traffic and parking.

A draft masterplan of the stadium design will be released for public feedback.

Stonnington chief executive Warren Roberts said the $44.6m stadium should be seen as an investment in quality facilities in the municipality, and the project was partly paid for by the state and federal governments.

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