Hoop City’s Geelong basketball hub closing down due to rising costs

A basketball training hub part-owned by an Olympic medallist is closing its doors, with management citing rising costs as the key factor.

Hoop City in Grovedale will close in the coming days. Picture: Alison Wynd

A Geelong sporting complex part-owned by an Australian basketball star is set to close its doors just two years after opening amid much fanfare.

Hoop City, located at 190 Torquay Rd in Grovedale, will hold sessions for the final time this Sunday.

The facility is one of four operated in Victoria under the Hoop City brand, with the others at Cheltenham, Eltham and Carrum Downs unaffected.

Opened in May 2022, the 1512 sqm Grovedale site offered a range of high-level basketball training services and court hire.

Memberships were also available, ranging from $45 to $70 a week.

Among the ownership group is Chris Goulding, a Melbourne United star and Boomers bronze medallist from the Tokyo Olympics.

The 35-year-old is also a Hoop City director.

Chris Goulding is a part-owner and director of Hoop City. Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images.

Fellow director Chris Moore claimed the Geelong closure was due to a “significant increase in the cost of operating the facility”.

“It is with much disappointment, we must advise that October 20 will be our last day of operation from this location,” he said.

“We have been actively searching for alternative venues in Geelong, but our efforts have sadly not been successful to date, however we will continue to do so.

“To our community, our Hoop City regulars and everyone who has supported us over the last few years, we send you our sincere thanks and appreciation.

“The wider Hoop City business continues to grow and none of our other locations are impacted by this closure.”

Mr Moore said he hoped to announce new locations in the near future.

Hoop City’s mission is to help aspiring basketballers raise their game to new levels in a safe, fun and challenging setting.

It combines technology and training tools, with professionally composed coaching programs.

The Torquay Rd site has been listed for lease by Maxwell Collins Real Estate for $285,000 annually, plus GST and outgoings.

Footballer Mark Blicavs at Hoop City Geelong In July 2023. Picture: Alan Barber.

The ongoing boom in basketball participation, particularly among juniors, across the Geelong region, has seen infrastructure lose pace with demand.

Ten new indoor sports courts are planned for Geelong’s fast-growing south, courtesy of state and federal government funding.

Those courts, spread across yet-to-be-built stadiums in Armstrong Creek and Waurn Ponds, will cater for a range of sports, including basketball.

Geelong council continues to lobby for a regional indoor sports and events centre capable of holding 5000 spectators that would allow city leaders to attract major basketball and netball events and teams to the region.

Originally published as Hoop City’s Geelong basketball hub closing down due to rising costs