What’s being proposed?
The Port Adelaide Football Club is proposing to upgrade the facilities at Alberton Oval.
The re-development includes;
- Upgrading player changeroom facilities in the Fos Williams Family stand to cater for women’s football and AFLW training and match days
- Upgrading and enlarged player training, gym and rehabilitation facilities to provide space and dedicated facilities for women’s sport
- Expansion of the indoor training space to include the provision of two indoor basketball courts, which will be used by junior basketball teams (West Adelaide Bearcats Basketball Club) out of PAFC training hours
- In line with Council/other relevant body requirements, more off-street parking to ensure all PAFC player and administration requirements are off-street and also inside the precinct to minimize resident disruption
- The dis-used croquet club, reserve and existing car park upgraded to a soccer pitch to provide additional formal training space for the football club. This pitch will be used by the North West Junior Soccer Association on Saturday mornings through winter for primary school soccer. On event days at Alberton Oval (SANFL or AFLW) this space will be used as car parking, as it is currently. Outside of these uses, it remains open green space for the community, but improved
- Landscaping and vegetation will be updated to include mature trees
- The Lone Pine monument is not impacted in any way.
The plans of the proposed development are available at the City of Port Adelaide’s office for review.
Have any community engagement sessions been held for local residents?
Yes, the Club undertook a voluntary community engagement information session on 15 February at 6:30pm.
The information session was held at the Cheltenham Community Centre. The information session was publicised via direct mail box delivery and direct post of a flyer invitation to properties within approximately 70 metres of the development site. This area was chosen based on Council’s Category 2 public notification area. The session was attended by more than 20 people, several from Brougham Place and Seventh Ave (Port Adelaide and Charles Sturt Council areas).
The objective of the information session was to provide the opportunity for the surrounding community to:
- Learn about Port Adelaide Football Club’s plans
- See concept plans
- Understand what the Council planning assessment process involves
- Ask questions about what is being proposed
What are the next steps?
There is a prescribed community consultation process which is part of the Development Application process. Residents have the opportunity to engage in this process.
The Club and Council will consider community feedback and determine what changes need to be made to the plans / development application (some changes were made as a result of community feedback at the first information session).
A development application has been lodged with the City of Port Adelaide Enfield Council.
Council will undertake its own formal public notification / consultation process. The Club will welcome further community feedback. The following steps will follow:
- Once Council receives community feedback via the statutory consultation process it will be forwarded to the Club for a response (that may include further refinement of the proposal)
- Council’s professional staff will assess the development application and provide a recommendation to the independent Council Assessment Panel
- The independent Council Assessment Panel will deliberate and make a planning decision on the development application
Is it correct that the park land to the west of the oval was bequeathed on the agreement it remain as public open space?
The open space to the west of the oval (eg bowling club area) is not affected by the development application.
With respect to the land to the east that fronts Seventh Ave, a significant portion of this land will be set aside for the soccer field and be available for use by a primary schools soccer competition and the general community when not used by PAFC or the schools.
This land remains as public open space, with improvements and increased maintenance.
Part of the redevelopment involves the dis-used Croquet Club which has been vacant for more than 20 years.
If so, who is responsible for that being maintained as such? Would it require a decision of the council or State Government to change that agreement?
The land is titled as Council owned community land.
Council has checked whether there is any trust or deed over the land and has not found any encumbrance.
At its Ordinary Meeting on 19 January 2021 Council resolved that Council’s CEO write to Port Adelaide Football Club confirming Council’s ‘in principle’ support for the proposed redevelopment and resolved that the support was subject to; development approval, adoption of a new Community Land Management Plan for Alberton Oval (after consideration of community feedback) and granting of a lease agreement necessary to facilitate the redevelopment project.
The ‘in principle’ support enables Port Adelaide Football Club to seek grant funding for the project, but also makes clear in the resolution of Council that this support is conditional on; development approval, the adoption of the Community Land Management Plan and the new lease agreement – all of which require either statutory notifications or community consultation in accordance with the Local Government Act 1999.
What changes would be required to the community land management plan to allow for the proposed development?
Port Adelaide Football Club’s proposal seeks to improve community and recreation facilities. Council believes the proposed development of these facilities will require minor changes to the community land management plan.
The Council will present a revised community land management plan to the April Council meeting. The proposed Lease/licence arrangements for proposed building and sports facilities (subject to community consultation) will also be presented to Council.
If adopted, these will then be subject to a further consultation with the community to inform Council’s decision.
Has the council received a proposal from PAFC to alter the community land management plan?
No, the Club has lodged a development application only, there is no proposal to alter the community land management plan.
Council has received a proposal from PAFC to develop the sporting and recreation facilities at Alberton Oval.
Council may decide to make minor changes to community land management plan to reflect the new uses proposed by PAFC for the land.
Is the council planning to hold a meeting next month where the community land management plan will be discussed?
It will be part of the Ordinary Council meeting agenda for April.
Will there be increased traffic and off street parking out of hours as a result of the proposed development?
In line with Council/other relevant body requirements, the development will include increased off-street parking to cater for the football club requirements and also any out of hours use.
The two basketball courts will be used by the West Adelaide Bearcats Basketball Club for their junior teams. Four training sessions running at any one time, will see 8 players (approx.) and coaches x 2, which brings less than 50 people at any one time. The facility will not host basketball matches, therefore extra crowd numbers and noise will not be an issue.
The soccer pitch / reserve space will be used by the junior primary schools’ soccer competition on Saturday mornings during the winter (between 8am-12pm). The off street parking upgrade on the precinct will cater for this.
The soccer pitch will be used for car parking on event days, as the current reserve space is currently.
Is there going to be a large scale increase to the use of Alberton Oval which will impact significantly on traffic flows and off-street parking?
Historically, as the home match venue of the Port Adelaide Football Club in the SANFL, Alberton Oval hosted SANFL matches every second week with crowds well in excess of 10,000 and up to 20,000.
The upgraded precinct is proposed to host SANFL and future AFLW games. SANFL game attendance will max. out 5000 and AFLW games the same. The AFLW game schedule will likely be from February to April, and then the SANFL season from April to August.
This is significantly less that the historical use of Alberton Oval as a match day venue.