- Jul 9, 2010
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No wonder the people driving past dismiss it then
White elephants
- Thread starter Smiling Buddha
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I don't. The WACA have no intention of moving.
Doss
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- Aug 1, 2011
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I don't think Etihad per se ruined that end of the CBD- Wurundjeri Way did though. It cuts Docklands off from the rest of the CBD.
- Jul 9, 2010
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Was this really erected in 1901? That's about 80 years too early if so; actually a pretty staggering use of colour and shape for that time. When was it torn down? Where did it used to sit? It'd be a bit 'art by numbers' now but that historical relevance would make it so cool in the city.federation arch.
from this....
to this...
now rusting away out the back of the Hume council depot in Sunbury.
- May 5, 2006
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It was erected in 2001.
- May 5, 2006
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This.
Subiaco Oval hosts Eagles and Dockers games and the WAFL GF. Other than the odd concert and rugby test it pretty much just sits there idle otherwise. No WAFL club requires a stadium of Subi's size. When the new stadium is completed Subi will be redundant, despite factions wanting to retain it.
The WACA ground is the home of the WACA - the WA cricket association. It hosts (other than this year) a test match each year, one or two ODIs/T20Is plus 5 shield matches, a handful of Big Bash fixtures and anywhere from 0 to 5 domestic one dayers depending on what format of competition is being run for one year. Women's cricket is played there too.
Do people think these matches will be played at the new 65,000 seater?
Gough
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- Sep 29, 2006
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I can only go by what I read, you're a local and bound to be better informed, but the WACA is looking most unloved it would seem, I just wonder that without a bit of attention it is in danger falling too far behind the other grounds in Australia. Are there any upgrades in the works?
- May 5, 2006
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The WACA redevelopment (as planned by the WACA themselves and financed by residential development on the site) was canned at the end of last year so for the time being nothing is going to change at the ground. IIRC the WACA 'own' the ground in agreement with the govt but it is conditional on it being a cricket ground. I.e. they can't just develop the entire site into apartment buildings and pocket the cash from selling them off. I stand to be corrected on this though/
The govt won't spend a cent on the WACA and nor should they. In every other cap city cricket and footy co-exist and share a venue, in Perth they do not. Footy holds the most sway because it brings 35,000 people through the gates 22 times a year. The WACA can conceivably move operations to Burswood, but I can't see what would motivate them to do so. At the WACA ground the WACA call the shots. No drop in pitches, no third party rent etc. The WACA will have income generating fixtures at best on a handful of days each year so the benefit to the Burswood stadium in getting them there is minimal.
As much as I cringe at the idea of a super-committee in WA the state badly needs a venue rationalisation round table. It looks like we'll have this in 2018 or whenever Burswood is finished:
Burswood: AFL matches, potentially big cricket matches
Subiaco: ???
WACA: Cricket, potentially not the big matches, no footy
Plus:
Lathlain: Perth Demons, West Coast training base
Bassendean: Swan Districts
Fremantle: South Fremantle, no Dockers training base as they will be in utensil-burn
East Fremantle: East Fremantle
Claremont: Claremont
Leederville: Subiaco/East Perth
Joondalup: West Perth
Rushton Park: Peel
It's not as simple as 'what to do with the WACA?'. A couple of scenarios I think may work - putting politics to one side for a second.
1. Demolish Subi altogether, develop the land. Keep the WACA, reconfigure it so footy can be played there again and make it the home of East Perth, the base for visiting AFL sides etc.
2. Demolish Subi and the WACA, develop the land. Dissolve the lease/ownership arrangement the WACA have at site and give them an equity stake in the Burswood stadium and a home at the venue in terms of administrative base, ability to hold shield games without losing $100k each time etc.
3. Demolish Subi, leave the WACA to their own devices to continue as they are or develop the site and move to Burswood under whatever terms they can negotiate with the operator.
Common theme of demolishing Subi.
There is arguably no need for 2 big oval stadiums in Perth, there is definitely no need for 3.
Starburns_
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The decision not to play a test there this summer is a significant one though. The Adelaide oval redevelopment has pushed the WACA comfortably back to the 5th choice venue in CA's eyes.
Were it not for the time difference allowing play to continue until 9pm in the East, the WACA would be in a much worse position. They may not want to move, but CA could force their hand with fixturing (especially if day/night tests ever become a reality).
- Jul 9, 2010
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Do to the WACA what they did to Perth Oval. Make it boutique, 20,000 seats of so, extend the boundaries again and keep the two big hills. Keep the WACA Members facade but refit a new stand there and at the other end. Bring in the temporary seating or move to Burswood for one-offs when it's the Ashes or the 20/20.
Knock down Subi but keep that nice old gate in the pocket. Develop the parkland either side into housing and make the oval the 'centrepiece,' with nothing but grass banks around. Of course, you'd have Subi here and the Royals at the WACA but they're not gonna want to make Leedy redundant and not going to want to keep a patch of grass for 10 games a season when you can have a bunch more flats in its place. So Subi's going regardless as it's literally pointless. I just like little stadiums.
Knock down Subi but keep that nice old gate in the pocket. Develop the parkland either side into housing and make the oval the 'centrepiece,' with nothing but grass banks around. Of course, you'd have Subi here and the Royals at the WACA but they're not gonna want to make Leedy redundant and not going to want to keep a patch of grass for 10 games a season when you can have a bunch more flats in its place. So Subi's going regardless as it's literally pointless. I just like little stadiums.
Gough
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That was what sounded warning bells for me too, in the meantime the Boot is having a refit, Manuka Oval is having money spent on it too and will host the BB Final. it looks to me that we could be heading for a situation similar to the one in England now where there are more Test venues than Tests and some of the more traditional grounds have missed out on Tests as the newer grounds like the Rose Bowl or Sophia Garden offer better facilities.
Doss
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Those pictures of the Athens venues are quite stunning.
Are any of the Olympic venues purpose built for the 2004 games actually still used for something?
Are any of the Olympic venues purpose built for the 2004 games actually still used for something?
- May 5, 2006
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Perth Oval is no longer an oval, nor is it particularly boutique. The redevelopment (Stage 1) has drastically increased the seated capacity of the venue.
The WACA was redeveloped to be more boutique about a decade or so ago. Capacity was reduced, hills were reinstated, playing surface was made more square to accommodate cricket only. Evidently it didn't work. What the ground needs is better facilities (food, drinks etc.) and some ******* shade.
Leedy could be redundant in Subi's place. It makes more sense for Subiaco Football Club to be based at say, Subiaco Football Club, then a couple of km down the road at Leedy. The Subi site is bigger and better but Leederville Oval is still prime land for development.
- May 5, 2006
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I couldn't believe it either.
I get that we have stuff from the 1962 Empire Games that isn't exactly in tip top condition nor would it be up to modern standards if it had been better maintained but to have Olympic facilities built a decade ago in ruin is absurd.
I don't think anyone would object to us having seven Tests every summer.
Borry
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Beijing has a few stadiums/arenas from the 2008 now in ruins. The baseball stadium, BMX arena, canoe/kayaking facilities, one of the indoor arenas that hosted the gymnastics etc. The water cube got converted into a shopping mall and water park and the birds best is no longer used for sporting events due to insane rent costs, but that's being converted to other uses.
Simply shows the ******* lazy nature of the government at the time (with many other examples) and furthermore the flaw in the host countries internal strategy of hosting such an event where massive amounts of funding are spent on infrastructure which has a two week lifeline.
If you want an example on why Greece is flat broke this is the one. How they can have it approved with no plans to either recoup some capex investment or cannibalise it so to speak for further use.....and still get it approved is mind blowing.
Doss
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It's been redeveloped now, obviously, but to get some idea of the state of disrepair Waverley Park fell into post-1999:
Part of the abandoned Disney World/Discovery Island in the USA.
By the end of 2022, Qatar will have a fair few white elephants.
By the end of 2022, Qatar will have a fair few white elephants.
Starburns_
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Manuka has certainly been chasing Bellerive to be venue #6, it's just coincidental that the improvements on both have closed the gap on the WACA.
I can't see it affecting whether a test gets played there like in England (aside from next summer), due to the population in Perth and the time difference, but it could very easily affect the quality of opponent for a test, and number of international limited overs fixtures.
The bolded is probably the most ridiculous part about hosting the Olympics, so many niche sports need new facilities to be built for the games, and then have very little purpose afterwards.
The swimming and athletics facilities are similar due to the scale of the stadiums, but at least there's a little more scope with what you can do with them afterwards (as Beijing have done), or in the case of the Melbourne Commonwealth games, slip them into existing buildings like the MCG and Rod Laver Arena.
F*** 'em.
Doss
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If Manuka overtook Bellerive and I was Tasmanian I'd be pretty annoyed- ACT doesn't even have a first class team.
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I think that most of the Qatar Stadia are meant to be able to be taken apart and moved after the WC to other countries that would like one
