THE South Fremantle Football Club has signed a new 40-year lease at Fremantle Oval, a move mayor Hannah Fitzhardinge says is a major signal of their commitment to its redevelopment.
The signing follows her trip to Canberra last week where she lobbied for funding with representatives from the Fremantle Dockers’ women’s team.
“It’s a big deal to say ‘were want to be part of this integrated facility,” Ms Fitzhardinge said of the lease signing.
“Sport is at the heart of Fremantle Oval – both in the past, in the present and into the future.
“With the redevelopment, we envisage a second-tier facility with 14,000 seating and fit-for-purpose facilities both for WAFL and AFLW events, which will include much-needed facilities for female sport.”
• How Freo Oval could look after its redeveloped, with plans for it to be an active 24/7 destination.
But Ms Fitzhardinge says the redevelopment plan should look beyond sport to other ways it can be activated into a “multi-use, 24/7” destination, and the city has a working group that also has representatives from Fremantle Hospital, the Fremantle Prison and the Fremantle Markets.
She says a business plan by Paatsch Group released in 2022 was probably sport-heavy but a good starting point to “get people thinking”.
Childcare
Education, rehabilitation, physiotherapy, elite sports and even a childcare facilities could be in the mix, given the council’s research has shown a gap in that area.
“Another question we have to resolve is, what is the balance of commercial use, and what types of things do we include to fill that area,” she said.
A reconfiguration of the oval is also a possibility, bringing it closer to Victoria Pavilion so punters don’t need binoculars to watch the footy and freeing up land next to the hospital. Some housing is still in the mix, with student accommodation another area Freo has an identified shortfall.
Ms Fitzhardinge said the trip to Canberra with Dockers CEO Simon Garlick and AFLW star and players’ representative Ange Stannett was to check that there was a funding pathway available to the City, otherwise the redevelopment was likely to stall.
• South Fremantle CEO Cameron Britt and Fremantle mayor Hannah Fitzhardinge sign the 40-year lease.
“It seems the Urban Precinct and Partnerships Program would be suitable for this project,” she said.
The UPPP kicks off next year, with the Albanese government committing $150 million over three years for projects “unifying urban places, growing economies and serving communities”.
Ms Fitzhardinge said the feds were impressed that Freo’s bid was coming through a project with multiple precinct partners, and it had the added benefit of ticking a lot of the necessary infrastructure needs such as access to a train station and a city centre.
Bulldogs CEO Cameron Britt said the club was thrilled to formalise its partnership and secure its future tenure.
Our home
“Having trained and played at this iconic ground for the past 124 years, Fremantle is our home, and the oval is of monumental importance for our players, members and supporters,” Mr Britt said.
“Securing our next 40 years is a tremendous outcome and the support by the City will allow our club to continue to grow and innovate as an inclusive, capable and contemporary sporting club.”
by STEVE GRANT