Alright, even though this isn't WSFC related I'm putting it here because it's AFL expansion related and some whiny people have been whinily whining about the AFL 2008 season thread being hijacked. Whiners.
Quote:
THE Queensland Government plans to spend $1.5 million building home change rooms at the Gabba for the state's second team.
The plans dashes the AFL's hopes of walking away from a contract tying it to the ground until 2015.
Sports Minister Judy Spence has acknowledged for the first time the Government would be willing to compromise on the existing contract, which states a second AFL side must be based at the Gabba until 2015.
But she said there was no way the deal would be dissolved completely.
The Government has rejected approaches from sporting-based businesses, including a sports medicine firm, to set up shop under the redeveloped Gabba because the area has been earmarked for the AFL.
But it is determined that space starts to earn income to help service the redevelopment debt.
Ms Spence was yesterday given a tour of the Gabba and shown the space set aside for the new side's home rooms and street-facing office space if required, which would be upgraded at a cost of $1.5 million.
Stadiums Queensland estimates the Gabba needs to draw a crowd of more than 12,000 to break even.
The Sports Minister said the compromise the Government would be most likely to accept from the AFL would be for the duration of the contract, which insists the second team plays 11 home games a year at the Gabba, to be extended by five years.
In exchange, the 11-game per season figure would be reduced, probably to five.
"We might push the 2015 time frame out further, but we have to make sure the Queensland taxpayers get some return for their investment," she said.
"We want to be fair to the AFL, if they are going to establish a team on the Gold Coast they will want to play some games there.
"But we have put a lot of money into the development of the Gabba to accommodate a second AFL team because that's what the AFL told us they wanted, so we are going to want some return on that investment."
Ms Spence reiterated the Government's stance it would not fund a new stadium on the Coast.
"Having just spent $160 million building Skilled Park on the Gold Coast, we don't have money set aside to build an AFL stadium."
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/ ... 42,00.html
it’s clear that the QLD Govt is not intending to build another stadium on the GC. Also, holding the AFL to it’s Gabba contract, even if ‘compromising’ in the process still means that GC17 will just be a reverse Brisbane Bears circa ‘87 –’92. Pretty risky for a start-up club. And not a very attractive relocation proposition for one of the Melbourne clubs that’s in the firing line.
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