Page 528 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 15 February 2017
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number numbers and increase in the variety of sports on offer and other interests utilising the facility, ranging from indoor sports to the flying of drones and model aircraft as well as a number of more intuitive community groups.
Gail Aiken and her team, with the support of co-owners Carmen and Graham Nunn, have all ensured that the mpowerdome operates like a family business, with community as the broader family. The mpowerdome community were quite rightly devastated when the facility closed its doors.
This issue has not arisen recently but has been the subject of many conversations with those opposite over their years in government. But to no avail. A resolution has not been achieved. The parking constraints that may well be the straw that broke the camel’s back certainly did not appear overnight. The issue has been simmering away for a long time, and at every turn the ACT government was well aware. Almost every politician that has had anything to do with the ACT has had a conversation with Gail about the future of the mpowerdome, certainly every member in Brindabella, every minister and every shadow minister in the sport and recreation portfolio.
I would like to acknowledge the great work that my colleague Mr Milligan has done since taking on the sport and recreation portfolio since the election. James is already well across and well aware of the issues. He is getting numerous emails and calls from many of the users and supporters of the mpowerdome, keen to see its doors reopen and the facility back up and running.
The frustration for the community that has utilised this facility lies in the lack of action. Everyone has made the right noises and agreed about the importance of keeping the facility going, but no-one has actually come up with a solution that is tenable.
This really speaks to the neglect of Tuggeranong. There is simply no other answer. There is no political imperative for the ACT Labor Party to do anything to improve the lives of Tuggeranong residents when it comes to the reopening of his facility. Mr Gentleman and Ms Burch have very little sway as local Labor members, it seems; otherwise one would imagine that this issue would have already been resolved and the facility reopened.
One contributor to the RiotACT, as recently as today, said:
If it was in gungahlin it would have a first class car park right now. Sadly we live on the wrong side of the lake and the wrong government is in power.
The Canberra Liberals have come closest to coming up with the right solution. Our solution would have made a difference to the entire precinct surrounding the mpowerdome. At the last election my colleagues and I committed $300,000 to ensure that a car park was built, a car park that was designed, I note, through a study that was funded by the ACT government but never acted upon. This is a modest sum of money in terms of the types of funding that we refer to in this place regularly. It is a modest sum that would ensure a massive return and massive contribution to the health and wellbeing of residents all across the ACT, most importantly, in my electorate of Brindabella.
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