SPORTING groups across Redland City scored a goal when council decided to launch an inquiry into finding the best spots to hold large civic events and for playing fields.
Mayor Karen Williams told Wednesday’s meeting the city’s showgrounds in Cleveland were at capacity and without a new venue the burgeoning civic events program would suffer.
She said sporting clubs, including touch football and soccer, had struggled with imposed restrictions at Redland Showgrounds.
But she said there were traffic and congestion problems with previous plans to have one central sporting complex which would be used by different codes.
Cr Williams said the city had attracted new events through an employed officer and a designated facility would pay dividends.
“Now the challenges are to be able to sustain that by having an event space that can actually also allow sporting groups to continue to do the great work they do,” she said.
Officers will assess sporting grounds and state school ovals to ensure they are being used efficiently and will also identify additional sites for sporting activities.
Chief executive Bill Lyon said a budget for further investigation and works would be drawn up after an initial report.
But Division 2 councillor Craig Ogilvie said the city had let down kids with a lack of sporting venues and no planning.
He was annoyed by the proposal and said the previous council allocated $80million to address the dire need for sports fields.
He said council identified a need for greater use of open spaces in a 2004 Sports and Recreational Facility Services study along with reviews of venues in 2008.
“The reality was that the council between 2008 to 2012 did all that work and identified an area where sports fields could and should go,” he said.
“This council took that stuff out of the budget and walked away from it and now, three years later the problem has only got worse.
“… it makes the balance sheet look good but does nothing to the liveability of the area and the community knows there are about 50,000 more people coming to this area over the next 20 years and they have no sporting fields and no plans.”
Cr Ogilvie said suggestions to use two blocks of federal government land at Birkdale were only made because an election was looming in March.
Division 6 councillor Julie Talty said was working on a proposal with Cr Mark Edwards to rectify the deficit of sporting fields in the city’s southern suburbs.
Cr Murray Elliott said the proposal should be for the entire city and not just for southern suburbs or to get politicians through an election.
Cr Mark Edwards said it was the right time for such a proposal unlike four years ago when an $80million sporting complex plan would have equated to large rate rises across the city.
The proposal was supported by all 11 councillors.
