Work on the Altona Sports Centre – Hobsons Bay’s premier basketball and netball stadium – in Altona Meadows is progressing well.
Long sections of the exterior concrete walls have been erected and the first of the roof trusses secured.
Four new courts are being added to the stadium, taking the number of indoor courts to 10.
The tender, won by local construction company Devco Project and Construction Management, included a new kiosk and administration office.
Car parks to the south and west of the building have already been completed.
The current works is Hobsons Bay Council’s biggest construction project to date.
The works have largely been funded by the council, although the State Government has made a $3 million contribution and the Altona Sports Centre Ltd is also contributing.
In sports forums I convened in my 2015-16 Mayoral year, it emerged 84 basketball and netball teams were suffering byes each week due to the shortage of courts.
That meant 42 games were not being played.
ASC Ltd told us four more courts were needed to meet the then demand.
In a 2017 report by consultants to the council, Otium, council was told it needed to build two courts every five years to keep up with projected demand in the municipality, particularly since basketball is Hobsons Bay’s fastest growing sport.
The first of these need to be built in the Williamstown or Newport area, with the Williamstown High School site in Pasco St the prime option.
