The Liberal party has today announced $20 million for the redevelopment of the State Tennis Centre.
The announcement was made by Shadow Minister for Disability Services; Sport and Recreation, the Hon Peter Collier MLC, at Optus Stadium this morning where he stated that the aging State Tennis Centre was well overdue for an upgrade. Mr Collier also stated that redevelopments to the existing site, into what would be a state of the art centre for excellence, would help attract international ITF and WTA tennis events to Perth.
Tennis West President Jan Truscott said that redeveloping that State Tennis Centre was something the organisation had been working towards for well over four years and that the redevelopment of the State Tennis Centre was a key priority for the Tennis West Board.
“The redevelopment of the State Tennis Centre at its current Burswood location is a top priority for Tennis West and our Board,”
“We have been working closely with the WA Government and the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries to better understand what the redevelopment looks like from both an infrastructure and cost perspective,”
“Our current facility is not fit-for-purpose due to ageing and unstable infrastructure. We need it to support community participation and athlete development; events for both players and spectators at a local, national and international level; and to be able to leverage commercial opportunities to support Tennis West into the future,”
“We are clear on the position of the State Tennis Centre remaining at Burswood and that this is what best suits the needs of our sport and the broader community and what will ensure a premier venue for all ages, all abilities and all levels of tennis,”
“We welcome the State Opposition’s announcement today, and will continue to work with across all stakeholder groups to fully realise a redeveloped State Tennis Centre at Burswood for the Western Australian community,” Truscott said.
Background notes
There are 25 years remaining on the current Tennis West lease at Burswood and the Board strongly supports that the State Tennis Centre remain at its current location on the Burswood Peninsula.
The redeveloped State Tennis Centre is planned to include 16 new International Tennis Federation (ITF) hard courts, four covered courts, improved court lighting, extended gym and administration facilities, new spectator facilities, increased parking and capacity for an additional tenant.
The primary objective of the Tennis West Board is to secure State Government support for a redeveloped State Tennis Centre at Burswood.
Tennis is a core community sport in WA with almost 66,000 registered players and more than 131,00 social players, with the WA Tennis League noted as the largest single association inter-club league competition in Australia.
Perth is increasingly recognised as an important gateway connection to Asian tennis, with teams and junior squads regularly visiting the State Tennis Centre to participate in events and development programs.
A redeveloped State Tennis Centre will provide new capacity for community access and use by providing a hub for the sport and driving physical activity and engagement.
Perth is one of three cities in Australia that hosts the ATP World Team Cup each January. However, the current facilities are impacting on Tennis West’s ability to attract new international events to Perth. The State Tennis Centre lacks the ITF compliant courts and facilities required to host a proposed new women’s event.
By developing a centre suitable for tournament hosting, accessible to transport and accommodation options, the State Tennis Centre will help drive tourism to WA and throughout the state. The development will enable the hosting and facilitation of state, national and international events in Perth, which will in turn increase visitors to WA who will go on to participate in tourism experiences in WA.
To view the State Tennis Centre redevelopment plan, please head to: https://bit.ly/3aBAIm0
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