Last week, no one wanted to spend money on Leichhardt Oval. Suddenly, everyone does
May 20, 2024 — 6.08pm
NSW Premier Chris Minns has had a change of heart about contributing to the upgrade of the rundown Leichhardt Oval after the federal government agreed to chip in for the much-needed works.
Minns earlier this year said the NSW government’s financial position meant there was no way the state could foot a $30 million bill for a major facelift of the inner west stadium.
However, Minns on Monday said he was now “open” to contributing some of the funding.
There has been no official confirmation from the federal government but the Wests Tigers NRL club told members on Monday that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had committed $20 million to Leichhardt’s refurbishment from an $80 billion contingency fund set aside in last week’s budget.
The Inner West Council, which owns the ground, would also contribute to the upgrade, which would mean the NSW government would feel obliged to stump up as much as $10 million.
Minns said the NSW government was prepared to consider contributing if costs were split.
“We haven’t made a formal decision yet but the circumstances have changed because it looks as though the federal government and the local government are going to chip in,” Minns told 2GB’s Ben Fordham on Monday.
“So given the cost isn’t just exclusively borne by us, and that the ground is falling into disrepair, we are open to it, but we haven’t made a final decision.”
Inner West Council has been spending about $1.4 million per year on Leichhardt in both maintenance and capital works. That spending includes recent upgrades to the existing change rooms and toilet facilities.
But Mayor Darcy Byrne has repeatedly said the council does not have the funds to pay for the kind of upgrades necessary for the oval to remain a viable NRL venue.
Instead, in 2023 the council devised a masterplan for the oval and called for state and federal government assistance in paying for it.
Minns’ new position on providing funding for the upgrades comes despite NSW receiving a major hit to its revenue after revised GST forecasts.
On Monday NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said although the government had already undertaken “fiscal clean-up”, lost revenue from slashed GST income would mean “tough decisions” would need to be made.
“The state will make investments in the must-have investments that we can’t do without,” he said.
“There is going to be tough decisions about policies we can’t implement or assets we can’t build as a result of NSW losing $12 billion because of the absurd GST system that we’re stuck with.”
Despite the investment, Leichhardt Oval’s most prominent tenant, the Wests Tigers, has still refused to commit to its future at the venue.
The Tigers have delayed a decision until next month on where they will play their home games in 2025 after a planned board meeting in Brisbane after Magic Round on Monday.
Chief executive Shane Richardson has refused to commit to Leichhardt Oval, and has been discussing with Venues NSW about the suitability of playing some games at larger stadiums such as Accor Stadium at Sydney Olympic Park or Parramatta’s CommBank Stadium.
The NSW government wants the Tigers to consider a three-year deal to play out of their major stadiums, which could allow time for Leichhardt Oval’s redevelopment to be finished.
In a letter to Tigers members on Monday, the club said: “There is a lot of media speculation around the potential and much-needed funding for Leichhardt Oval.
“To clarify, Wests Tigers has not received any confirmation from the federal or state government, or local council, that funding for Leichhardt Oval upgrades has been approved.
“Furthermore, Wests Tigers has had no contact from the NRL about future funding for Leichhardt Oval. Our CEO, Shane Richardson, did receive a phone call from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese late last week, indicating that $20 million had been earmarked for a Leichhardt Oval upgrade.”
In March, Richardson and Byrne banded together to request Leichhardt receive 10 per cent of the state government funding allocated to Penrith’s stadium upgrade.
The Panthers’ BlueBet Stadium will receive a $309 million facelift in 2025 that expands the ground’s capacity to 25,000, with an all-new western grandstand and refurbished eastern grandstand.
