THE long-awaited upgrade of the Frankston Basketball Stadium will be “phenomenal”, Basketball Victoria CEO Nick Honey says.
The final piece of the puzzle was locked in last week when the Victorian Liberals promised $15 million towards the project, matching a commitment from Frankston Council and the federal government. The state government committed to the project last month, meaning that it is set to proceed no matter the result at next month’s election.
Basketball Victoria CEO Nick Honey called the announcement the “good news we’ve been hoping for”.
“The additional courts will give more players a chance to take the courts, with upgraded facilities attracting new players across Frankston City,” Honey said. “We thank all levels of government for their support of sport in Victoria and look forward to working together to create a new, invigorated hub for basketball and gymnastics across the region.”
The planned upgrade will include the construction of two new multi-sport courts, the redevelopment of two multi-sport courts, refurbishment works on four existing courts, and construction of a gymnastics hall to host the Bayside Gymnastics Club.
Frankston District Basketball Association CEO Wayne Holdsworth said that the project would help the organisation keep up with the growing number of kids signing up for basketball. “We are delighted to now know that the project is fully funded. We have just exceeded 1050 teams which is an increase of 20 per cent this year and we are busting at the seams, so additional courts are critical,” he said.
The redevelopment of the stadium has taken years to get up and running after a botched attempt to develop the project four years ago. In 2018 a planned upgrade to the stadium was abandoned and ratepayer dollars for the project were diverted elsewhere after negotiations between the FDBA and Frankston Council collapsed. Later that year Basketball Victoria completed an investigation into allegations of serious misconduct at the FDBA.
