Brompton Gasworks review findings into criteria used to reject Adelaide Crows plan for new headquarters
The state government has released the findings of an independent review of the Adelaide Crows’ failure to secure the Brompton Gasworks for their new headquarters.
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A $54,000 review of criteria used to reject the Adelaide Crows’ plans for headquarters at Brompton Gasworks has found the club failed because a Victorian developer won on “commercial considerations”.
In a ministerial statement to parliament, Housing and Urban Development Minister Nick Champion said the independent AECOM review found the Crows’ plan to deliver more open space than competitors might not have been acknowledged during the site assessment by government land agency Renewal SA.
Mr Champion said the review would not be released publicly until negotiations finished with the successful developer, MAB Corporation, because of “probity and commercial sensitivities”. This is expected within weeks.
“The review has determined that due to criteria, weightings and the focus on commercial considerations in the request for proposal process set out by Renewal SA, the Adelaide Football Club proposal would not have been able to secure this site, despite their clear and publicly stated interest in it,” Mr Champion said.
“The review also indicates the provision of open space, entertainment and recreational opportunities provided in the Adelaide Football Club’s proposal may have resulted in greater strategic and community benefit, that may not have been captured in the criteria and weightings set by Renewal SA at the commencement of the process.”
Mr Champion said talks with MAB had yielded a 2500sqm increase in open space on the 5.81ha site from 1.5ha to 1.75ha, a 25 per cent increase in tree canopy and an increase in affordable housing from 15 per cent to more than 17 per cent.
“The Malinauskas Labor government has assisted the Adelaide Football Club in identifying and securing the best site to meet its long-term requirements for a world-class headquarters at Thebarton Oval. This is a good outcome for the Adelaide Football Club and a good outcome for the state,” Mr Champion said.
It is understood the MAB proposal contained more extensive environmental cleanup of contaminated soil, including its removal for treatment, than the Crows’ plan to cap and seal the affected area and build on top.
This was considered likely to cause a cost blowout and potential long-term environmental risk.
The Liberal Opposition on Tuesday morning demanded Mr Champion honour a commitment to give a “comprehensive” report on the review’s outcome.
Liberal planning spokeswoman Michelle Lensink said Labor’s review had been “a complete waste of time and money”, because the Crows on August 24 announced Thebarton Oval as the club’s new headquarters. This had been the club’s other preferred site.
Ms Lensink said accused Labor of embarrassment at having, in May, promised the taxpayer-funded review would be finished in as little as six weeks, yet keeping the outcome secret for so long.
“Peter Malinauskas launched the review to see if the Adelaide Crows’ proposal for the Brompton Gasworks site had been unfairly rejected and we suspect the results don’t say what Labor wants to hear,” she said, ahead of Mr Champion’s statement.
Mr Champion in May announced a review of the former Liberal government’s decision in January to name MAB Corporation as the preferred proponent for the 5.81ha inner-west site, ahead of the Adelaide Football Club.
Property Council state executive director Daniel Gannon hailed the findings as an “important and sensible outcome”, which protected MAB’s investment already allocated to the project.
“South Australia needs to continue to send the right message to investors and roll out the welcome mat, rather than scare them away. Any other outcome would have negatively impacted South Australia’s investment brand, plain and simple,” Mr Gannon said.
In a pre-election promise, Labor in February vowed to review the criteria used by state government land agency Renewal SA to choose the Victorian developer.
The-then Opposition Treasury spokesman Stephen Mullighan said Labor, if it won government, would use the review to determine whether to re-open development submissions for the prized inner-west land parcel – thus giving the Crows’ $270m plan another chance.
On January 27, MAB was announced as the preferred proponent for a housing/commercial development by Treasurer Rob Lucas, who said Renewal SA’s tender evaluation process showed it offered the highest economic benefit.
The Adelaide Football Club on August 24 announced it would establish its new home base at Thebarton Oval, which had been the other short-listed site in addition to the gasworks.
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