Fear Kingston to suffer

Councillor fights Antarctic Division waterfront proposal

MOVING the Australian Antarctic Division from Kingston to the Hobart waterfront will be detrimental to the Kingborough community’s employment and economy, a local councillor has warned.

An Antarctic science and education precinct is a key element of the Macquarie Point development, but will need to attract major players from the $180 million-a-year sector.

The Macquarie Point Development Corporation and the Department of State Growth have met the AAD, CSIRO, Bureau of Meteorology, University of Tasmania, the Commission for the Con- servation of Antarctic Marine Living Resource and the Tasmanian Polar Network.

Most are backing the proposal due to ageing buildings and pressure to make way for tourism development on waterfront sites.

However, Kingborough councillor Richard Atkinson has asked whether it had been notified about the idea.

Acting general manager Tony Ferrier said the council had received no communication from the division or either level of Government, but would engage with the state in the next few weeks.

Cr Atkinson later spoke to the Mercury and said he did not want a situation such as Vodafone’s move into the Hobart CBD two years ago. He said council needed to be part of discussions.

“[The AAD] is a major employer and a massive part of Kingston,” he said.

“I would hate to see more work move into the city, why should people [from Kingston] have to drive from the city. When people work there surely they support local businesses, too.”

An AAD spokeswoman said the division had not held had any detailed discussions on what would be a big move from Kingston, but she reiterated they were “broadly” supportive of the proposal.

“There are a number of factors the division would need to consider prior to relocating any of its facilities to Macquarie Point,” she said. “The division has been based at Kingston since late 1980 and the infrastructure continues to meet [our] needs.”