DURING her final speech in parliament, retiring Member for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell has called on the State Government to invest in a new sports and events centre for Shepparton.
Ms Lovell’s advocacy for the project has been unrelenting, with the matter raised 32 times in parliament since 2016.
Her first constituency question at the start of the 59th parliament in 2018 concerned the need for a new Shepparton stadium, and the topic was again her first constituency question at the start of the 60th parliament in 2022.
In the last sitting week of her 24-year parliamentary career, Ms Lovell delivered her final adjournment speech to once more urge the State Government to invest in a new sports and events centre that Shepparton needs and urgently deserves.
“Shepparton cannot wait any longer. We need a new stadium that will serve our children now and long into the future and allow them to keep participating in sports as the city grows,” said Ms Lovell.
“We also need a sports and events centre that reflects the city’s growing role as a regional centre for major events, and which attracts national and international tournaments.”
The current Shepparton stadium has served the community for decades but no longer has the capacity to meet demand as participation in basketball and other indoor sports grows, while the ageing facility fails to meet safety and accessibility standards.
Ms Lovell secured a Liberal election commitment to invest in a new stadium in the 2018 and 2022 elections, but subsequent elected Labor Governments have never matched the commitment.
“Labor has persistently failed to fund projects in regional Victoria, with only 12 per cent of infrastructure spending going to regional Victoria under Labor, despite the regions being home to 25 per cent of the population,” said Ms Lovell.
The Liberal-National Coalition has pledged to guarantee that 25 per cent of infrastructure investment goes to regional Victoria to deliver projects like the Shepparton stadium if elected.
The new stadium will have four multi-use courts that meet national standards and a show court with seating for up to 3,000 spectators, along function and event spaces, a reception, cafe, new changing rooms, accessible amenities and more carparking.
Ms Lovell has called for $12M from the Victorian Government for the project.
