Tasmanian State Election 2018: Basketball set to be the big winner if Liberals re-elected

THE Hobart Chargers will finally have a place to call home if the Liberals are re-elected on Saturday.

Premier Will Hodgman and MP Elise Archer join netballers, basketballers, and gymnasts to announce the Liberals’ commitment to fund a new multi-sport facility in Glenorchy. Picture: SAM ROSEWARNE

THE Hobart Chargers will finally have a place to call home if the Liberals are re-elected at Saturday’s State election.

The Government has pledged $10 million to design, plan and construct a multi-sports indoor facility in Glenorchy, which would be used for multiple sports including basketball, netball, gymnastics, volleyball, futsal and martial arts.

Premier Will Hodgman plays some one-on-one with Archie Stewart, 12, of the Kingston Kings after announcing commitment to new multi-sport facility to be built in Glenorchy. Picture: SAM ROSEWARNE

However it is SEABL club Hobart which would be the biggest beneficiary following a boom in participation rates in basketball last year.

The Chargers moved to the Derwent Entertainment Centre last year from the Hobart Netball and Sports Centre at Creek Road, but are still forced to train at New Town High School.

The proposed nine court state-of-the-art centre — likely to be located on the DEC site — would help solve the biggest issue in the sport of inadequate facilities.

“This is huge for all sports, we are in desperate need of facilities down south and in particular with basketball, the increase in participation of numbers has exploded,” Chargers coach Anthony Stewart said.

“We are now turning kids away from the sport for the first time.

“It is really important for us as an organisation, we have struggled over the years to get facilities and grow revenue.

“These facilities will allow us to work with Basketball Tasmania to make sure we get basketball on the front foot.”

The investment includes $1 million for consultation and design work in 2018-19, $1 million for planning approvals and site preparations in 2019-20 and $8 million for when construction begins in 2020-21.

A re-elected majority Liberal Government will also continue Basketball Tasmania’s $250,000 funding to deliver school clinics across the state and Netball Tasmania’s $250,000 development funding.

“Increasing participation rates is fantastic but it brings growing pains, we need to provide facilities,” Premier Will Hodgman said.

“The beauty of this is it will be a multipurpose facility as well, it will help cater for the massive increase in participation across a variety of sports and codes.”