THE redevelopment of the Frankston Basketball Stadium looks certain to proceed.
The project now has bipartisan support from the state government and opposition, The Times understands. The federal government and Frankston Council have both committed $15 million to the project, meaning it is now expected to go ahead no matter the result at next month’s election.
Frankston MP Paul Edbrooke confirmed the state government’s support last month. Liberal candidate for Frankston Michael O’Reilly is expected to make a funding promise imminently.
Edbrooke said in his announcement “we’ll invest up to $15 million towards the redevelopment of the Frankston & District Basketball Association’s stadium in Seaford, delivering new facilities that the whole community can be proud of. I’m so thrilled to be able to provide this funding and deliver facilities that our community deserves. This funding will help keep our kids active and engaged through a re-developed stadium that the whole community can be proud of.”
“A huge thank you to Frankston Basketball, FDBA CEO Wayne Holdsworth and his team, the FDBA family and our community who fought a long battle to get to this fantastic outcome,” Edbrooke said.
The stadium redevelopment has been a long running saga. In 2018, a planned upgrade to the stadium was abandoned and ratepayer funding for the project was diverted elsewhere after negotiations between FDBA and Frankston Council collapsed.
Frankston councillor Kris Bolam was sitting on council during the previous failed attempt to redevelop the site. He said “This time around there is a legitimate sense of trust between council and the FDBA. The scale of the redevelopment is much broader and thankfully we’ll also have the new multi-deck facility next door which will address any parking issues. It’s a clearer and more cohesive proposition than the previous iteration.”