West push continues

Agroup pushing for a Horsham west site for a proposed indoor sports stadium will continue to press its case in a meeting with municipal staff next week.

Group spokeswoman Di Bell said members had been busy discussing the issue with various Horsham sporting representatives and were keen to pass on the information.

“We’ve been trying to gain insight into what each organisation’s vision is for their sport and what uses they might have for a stadium,” she said.

“We haven’t been saying where a stadium should be, only gauging what each group thinks.”

Mrs Bell said the group had also met with Horsham College principal Rob Pyers to gauge the benefits of directly involving the college in development plans.

The group is pushing for a Horsham west alternative to a shortlist of three potential sites for a new sports stadium, likely to cost between $8-million and $10-million.

The group’s main arguments are for the centre to have the potential to expand into a precinct to include outside sporting fields and car parks, be in consistent use and be subject to cost-sharing.

It has pin-pointed Horsham College’s vacant former tech school oval as a possible stadium site with the potential to expand a precinct across a disused rail easement and Remlaw Road into nearby paddocks.

Shortlisted sites subject to a Horsham council community survey were a former railway depot in Mill Street, Mcbride Street near Horsham Basketball Stadium and the Wimmera River end of Horsham Showground.

A council project control group including council, consultant, Sport and Recreation Victoria and sport and community group representatives is working on the plans.

The project control group is considering all locations and will prepare a report for the Horsham council, which is likely to consider findings at a meeting in June.

Mrs Bell said her group had considerable credibility based on members’ experience in sporting and community organisations.

She stressed members were putting their thoughts forward to help in the selection process.

“We want to work with the council towards the best outcome for the whole community,” she said.

“As a group we all have a lot of links to a lot of sections of the community and we’ve been using those links to find out what people think.

“An early assessment of what we’re finding is support for a Horsham west location for the centre.

“The fact the school has indicated it would base its sport and physical education program in the facility, would mean 350 to 400 students would be using it a day.

“Depending on a user agreement, that would mean the school would most likely shoulder a high degree of financial responsibility for the centre’s maintenance and security.

“This would also help open the door for any development that might include Horsham College becoming a significant base for high-level country Victorian sporting programs and greater opportunities for pathway sporting education programs both at the college and nearby Federation University.” SCHUBERTS PEST SERVICES Ph: 5382 7484