Victorian Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos today inspected progress on the State Basketball Centre redevelopment project, backed by a $105 million investment from the Victorian government to create the premier basketball centre in Australia.
The Andrews Labor Government’s $105m in tandem with Knox City Council’s $27 million contribution to the project have been put to great use with the State Basketball Centre redevelopment works in progress, with steel skeleton now being installed.
The redeveloped venue will deliver 12 new indoor community courts for local basketball competitions, making a total of 18 indoor courts at the centre, along with a dedicated high-performance training facility to be used by Basketball Victoria’s High Performance programs in tandem with other venue tenants including WNBL and NBL teams.
These facilities, alongside new administrative offices, will cater for the burgeoning basketball community in Victoria. There will be a number of tenants at the newly redeveloped State Basketball Centre including Basketball Victoria, Knox Basketball Inc, Basketball Australia, South East Melbourne Phoenix (NBL) and Melbourne Boomers (WNBL).
There will also be administration facilities to support a range of local sports organisations and clubs, and a new gymnastics centre to reflect the sport’s continued growth in the region.
Minister Dimopoulos met with Basketball Victoria CEO Nick Honey, Victoria Metropolitan state representative Archer McMenamin and a number of other dignitaries to tour the redevelopment including Member for Bayswater Jackson Taylor, Member for Mount Waverley Matt Fregon, Pete Betson (SRV), Ben Delaney (Development Victoria), Knox City Council Mayor Susan Laukens, Deputy Mayor Nicole Seymour and other Council representatives, Marie-Claire and Ken from the State Sports Centre Trust.
The Minister was shown artwork created by Palawa woman and Mullum Mullum community artist Amanda Wright on the hoarding around the site, which tells the story of the Traditional Owners, their culture, and the heritage of the land on which the State Basketball Centre is being built.
The project is also a boost for local industry and employment, supporting more than 500 jobs during construction and creating more than 100 new jobs once the centre is operational.
“Basketball is huge in Victoria, and we’re investing so more people can enjoy taking part in the sport they love, our top teams can train and be their best, and local sports have top class facilities,” Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos said. “From community sports to elite competition, we’re supporting our basketballers and gymnasts to excel.”
Basketball Victoria CEO Nick Honey said the contributions of the Andrews Labor Government and Knox City Council will enable incredible opportunities for future generations from Knox Basketball Inc and the entire Victorian basketball community.
“Both the Andrews Labor Government and Knox City Council have made a significant investment in this much-needed expansion of the home of Victorian basketball,” Honey said. “We are excited to see it starting to take shape and realise the size and impact this facility will have.
“A new and expanded home for Knox Basketball Inc – the largest association in the country – will help facilitate participation growth in the region and it will be great to see all 18 courts in use at this stadium.
“We like to call Victoria – Australia’s ‘basketball factory’ due to not only the size, but the national and international success of players, coaches, officials and administrators who develop along the pathway and find their place on the big stage.
“We look forward to the completion of the development which secures our vision for a world-class facility for players, fans, families and the entire Victorian basketball community.”
