A DATE has been set for the long-awaited public opening of the $12.9 million basketball stadium expansion at the Wangaratta Sports and Aquatic Centre (WSAC).
Rural City of Wangaratta Council announced the stadium would open its doors on Monday, January 13 with a community open day set for the following Saturday, January 18.
The community and the North East have been eagerly awaiting the cutting of the red tape since a showcase pre-season NBL match between South-East Melbourne Phoenix and Brisbane Bullets in late August placed the showcourt in the spotlight for around 900 spectators.
The expansion was expected to be completed in October, but a hold up with an occupancy permit over matters concerning fire safety regulations for the courts forced users to be fenced off from use of the new facilities.
In an announcement last Friday, council said the occupancy permit had been issued and over the coming weeks, staff will finalise their operational and safety training to ensure a seamless and safe opening.
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“We're proud to offer this resource to our community, and we can’t wait to see it come to life with activity and enthusiasm,” council sports, aquatic and events precinct manager Leon Newton said.
“The Rural City of Wangaratta and WSAC thank the community for their patience during these final stages of the stadium’s development and approval.”
Wangaratta Basketball Association (WBA) president Adam Maher said the basketball community was ready to reap the rewards following a long and sometimes frustrating wait.
“It’s been a really hard run up to it, but we always knew there was going to be a bit of pain to get the gain,” he said.
“I tip my hat to each and every basketballer who has stuck with it and endured that pain because our numbers haven’t been too bad.
“We’ve been dying to get on these courts but it takes time unfortunately.
“I think the length of time to get the building completed and have these fire checks on the end has been a little bit of a frustration, but it’s not anyone’s fault at council or anyone else, it’s just the process.”
The delay saw WBA shift its under 16 and under 18 regional tournaments to Wodonga for the second year in a row and forced the league to adjust its spring domestic season, playing games at Galen Catholic College and Cathedral College.
WBA were granted a one-off permit to host the spring domestic competition grand finals on the new facilities on December 14.
Mr Maher said the excitement built up from the wider community after accessing the new facilities for their grand finals would translate into the new year as the association set goals for growth for their some 650 members into the future.
“We want to be at 900 members in the next three years and I think this facility is going to give us the ability to keep building programs and actually get to that number,” he said.
“It’s going to be a fantastic thing to have everyone back together, right from our Aussie Hoops program to our under 10s, right up to our open men and women.
“It builds momentum, you’ve got your Aussie Hoops kids we want to be coming through the system in the same place, that’s what’s going to build Wangaratta basketball numbers.
“It’s so exciting and a fantastic reward after the long wait.”
Mr Maher said the association would look to utilise all full-sized basketball courts at its disposal, leaving the two smaller length courts as part of the older facility in the past.
The autumn domestic season will kick off in the second week of February, with the association set to host all matches back to in the stadium and the new courts.
Mr Maher said it would be vital to bring back junior regional tournaments to the city, which will start with the under 12s and under 14s tournaments coming back to Wangaratta in March, and the under 16s and under 18s set to return next year.
“It’s a must to get back here, not just for the basketball community but for Wangaratta as a whole because whilst it’s about basketball, it brings business to Wangaratta,” he said.
“It shows the community that this is a well-recognised sport and it’s going to bring something to Wangaratta as a whole.”
A $5.46m State Government Community Sports Infrastructure Stimulus Fund grant enabled the project that had an initial completion date of November 2023.
Mr Maher thanked WSAC, council and Southern Cross developers who have seen this project through to the end and made WBA’s dream of new courts a reality.
Council issued an expression of interest form to book the courts early in the New Year.
The form can be found via the link: www.wsac.vic.gov.au/Sports/Sports-Clubs.
Priority will be given to booking requests from existing user groups and regular sports clubs.
