Tassie AFL team base: Battle ground heats up as Kingborough Council takes on Clarence with four oval plan

Kingborough Council’s ambitious bid to become the home of Tasmania’s AFL High Performance Centre has been unveiled. See the plans here.

Kingborough Mayor Paula Wriedt with an aerial view of an expanded Twi Ovals precinct to accommodate an AFL High Performance Centre. Picture James Bresnehan.jpg

Kingborough has come out fighting in the battle to win Tasmania’s AFL High Performance Centre with Mayor Paula Wriedt saying her council was not only united in its bid to win the $70m facility but had no need to “destroy parks’ to make it happen.

Clarence councillors voted 7-5 on Monday to support in principle the High Performance Centre going into land at Rosny, next door to Eastlands Shopping Centre and Rosny College.

Ms Wriedt said her team had decided months ago to back their proposal to host it “13 minutes south of Hobart”.

Kingborough Mayor Paula Wriedt with an aerial view of an expanded Twi Ovals precinct to accommodate an AFL High Performance Centre. Picture: James Bresnehan.

“Unlike Clarence, we don’t have to destroy any parklands or skate parks, and we don’t have a community that is divided over this project,” she said.

“What we do have is a united council.

“We are 100 per cent unanimousin that we should be the logical choice for the High Performance Centre here in Kingston.

Kingborough Council's vision for Tasmania's AFL High Performance Centre at the Twin Ovals. Picture Kingborough Council

“We can provide the AFL with a facility that can be built on time and on budget because we don’t have the challenges associated with trying to build something of this quality on a park or on a golf course.”

Kingborough’s audacious plan includes doubling the Twin Ovals to four fields.

The existing Twin Ovals No. 2 would become the Tasmanian AFL team’s primary ground, which is roughly the same size as the MCG.

Kingborough Mayor Paula Wriedt looks over Twin Ovals plans with Knights cricket club president Jeff Ross, Deputy Mayor Clare Glade-Wright and Michael McGregor, of the Tigers TSL team. Picture James Bresnehan

Twin Ovals No. 1 ground, which regularly hosts State League games, and has hosted AFL preseason camps and preseason games, would become Tasmania’s secondary oval, being about the same dimensions as Marvel Stadium’s playing surface.

The administration block and high performance facilities would wrap around the Tasmanian AFL team’s primary ground and occupy most of the existing car park.

Kingborough Knights cricket team would be relocated to a brand clubrooms and new oval _ to be the same size as Marvel Stadium’s field _ on the far west side of the precinct, which would become the new home of cricket.

Kingborough Council will expand its Twin Ovals precinct to four fields if it wins Tasmania's AFL High Performance Centre. Picture Kingborough Council

A new fourth oval, based on the size as the Kingston Beach Oval, would be built on the eastern side, and would be used by the Tasmanian AFLW team, junior football and junior cricket.

“It would enable our existing tenants, both the cricket and the football clubs, to have continued access to high quality facilities,” Ms Wriedt said.

“We don’t want to see any disadvantage to those two clubs.”

Kingborough Cricket Club president Jeff Ross said his club had been engaged from the start.

“There was some trepidation initially but the opportunity for both cricket and football clubs, and the community, is huge and we are fully supportive,” he said.