WA Labor has pledged $16 million towards a new state-of-the-art basketball headquarters for the Perth Wildcats and Perth Lynx in Warwick.
WA Labor has pledged $16 million towards a new state-of-the-art basketball headquarters for the Perth Wildcats and Perth Lynx in Warwick.
Speaking at the Warwick Basketball Stadium, home of the NBL1 West Warwick Senators, premier Roger Cook said if the Labor is re-elected on March 8, it would provide $16 million of a total $26 million upgrade package to provide a raft of new facilities at the venue.
These facilities will include three new courts, a gym and physiotherapist ammenities. Existing facilities will also be refurbished.
The premier said its contribution would allow for additional third party funding support, including from private entities and other tiers of government.
“Warwick has long been a key hub for basketball and this major upgrade will cater for the growing demand, while improving development pathways and become the home of our Perth Wildcats and Perth Lynx," Mr Cook said.
Tuesday’s announcement follows comments made by Perth Wildcats owner Mark Arena at a Business News Success and Leadership breakfast in November last year.
Mr Arena, who grew up in Greenwood and purchased the club for $40 million in July last year from Craig Hutchison-backed Sports Entertainment Group, gave insight into the present facility constraints impacting both the Wildcats and Perth Lynx.
These comments were reiterated by the Wildcats owner on Tuesday.
Aside from Wildcats players regularly training at high schools on the weekends, Mr Arena said the club – which is based out of the Bendat Basketball Centre in Mt Claremont – also shared gym facilities with the neighbouring Western Force rugby union team.
“It’s been the most frustrating and surprising thing since I’ve taken over the Wildcats,” he said at the time.
“So I’m keen to work really collaboratively with a number of different parties, local and state government, around putting a proposal together for a dedicated facility for both the Wildcats and Lynx to share.”
Although Mr Arena did not reveal the location of the potential purpose-built facility at the event, he did say it would be able to be also used by the community, with state and local government funding support included.
Aside from the club benefitting from the new facilities, Mr Arena said there was something else equally as special.
"I'm also really excited that here at Warwick Stadium, we're going to have every level of basketball from kids - I played here in primary school - all the way up, every level, to pro in a single place," he said at the press conference.
"Also moving here is our academy teams."
Tuesday's announcements follow a series of sport and recreation infrastructure pre-election commitments by the state government.
On Saturday, Mr Cook pledged $186 million towards community sport facilities - and a day earlier, an additional $30 million to either construct or refurbish women's community sport facilities.
