Media release – Our Place Hobart, 12 July 2024
New image shows devastating impact of AFL stadium on Hobart’s waterfront heritage
Our Place has released a new architectural render showing the devastating impact the Cox designed AFL stadium will have on Hobart’s celebrated urban heritage.
According to Our Place spokesperson, Roland Browne, “You just can’t hide how huge and how utterly inappropriately sited this stadium will be. The new design is even bigger and far, far worse in its impacts than even the original stadium promised by the Rockliff government.”
“At 54 metres high, it is 25% higher than the original proposal, three storeys higher than the Grand Chancellor (42 metres) and only six metres short of the height of the Tasman Bridge (60 metres). Every Tasmanian who cares about our city’s unique beauty will be horrified.”
Noting that Our Place’s renders of the original proposal have subsequently been proven to be correct, Mr Browne said, “The new render is being released because Cox Architects failed to release any image that shows the actual impact of their gigantic stadium on Hobart—and for good reason. A building of this immense size is clearly wrong for Hobart’s historic waterfront and highly destructive of what makes our city celebrated.”
Mr Browne pointed out that the render is not an artist’s impression but is professionally produced by architects using standard methods on the basis of publicly available information about Cox’s proposed stadium design. “The river of taxpayers money is already pouring out of Tasmania to pay for this stadium with mainland firm Cox Architects being paid $37.9 million of Tasmanian taxpayers’ money—that’s $37.9 million less jobs, health care and homes going to the biggest mainland companies—to produce a design that destroys the urban heritage of Hobart and the spiritual importance of the Cenotaph.”
Mr Browne said no design or engineering professional privately believes that the stadium can be built for $715 million. “Just as the Premier was wrong about the height and size of the stadium, he’s also going to be proven wrong about the costs. That’s why we need to stop this stadium before it threatens our already failing health, housing and education systems.’
Ted Mead
July 13, 2024 at 08:52
The Liberals traditionally, and now Labor equally, are driven with inherently warped priorities!
Given the present make-up of parliament I can’t see the stadium at Hobart’s waterfront not going ahead. All the planning preliminaries required seem to be moving forward at lightning pace to appease the demands of the AFL. Of course the funding costs will blow out astronomically! The government knows this, and in its usual style will simply dismiss that down the track with endless excuses!
Whilst a timber clad stadium may look more appealing than metal, the construction will inevitably be an inappropriate eyesore towering over a delightful heritage area.
It’s all destined to be yet another bungle in the city jungle!
Chris
July 15, 2024 at 15:21
Simple solution: tear all those old buildings down, sell the demolition rubbish to scrap merchants and seal the site with concrete or tar for use as a car park.
* Build as enormous cairn with the names of the liars from State Parliament (most of them) and the dictators from the AFL.
* Go to the RHH for refreshments at their coffee shop because we were deprived of a health system by a mob of footbrawlers who have no refinement, and along with all of us were lied to JUST before an election, principally by a potato farmer with no Tasmania themed roots or conscience.
Belle
July 24, 2024 at 11:10
It’s absolutely diabolical! I can’t believe it!
What is this crappy government thinking?
Roderick
July 24, 2024 at 22:38
Liberal governments in Tasmania, just like Labor governments in Tasmania, have always shown scant regard to the Tasmanian environment, whether natural, heritage, built or social. They have traditionally been the toys for developers and others who wish to make bucketloads of money at the expense of Tasmanians.
Why do governments do this? Well the old catch cry is ‘jobs and growth’. Clearly many developers see these parties as easy and simple pushovers. But is there more to these stories? There is, but it has been heavily redacted.
“I’m glad I’m not in El Salvador tonight, it’s hard to keep the bedroom neat when you’re tripping over dismembered feet, I’m glad I’m in Tasmania tonight, Tasmanian men may not be bright, but they don’t disappear in the middle of the night, I’m glad I’m in Tasmania tonight”. — From the Max Gillies Report.