New extra permanent grandstand plan for Victoria Park in the Adelaide city parklands finally killed off in 2008
Adelaide city council in 2008 rejected the second of attempts by successive South Australian governments (Liberal and Labor) to have an extra permanent grandstand built on Adelaide city's Victoria Park to help avoid dismantling temporary grandstands for the Adelaide 500 car races every year.
A permanent new grandstand on Adelaide city’s Victoria Park, proposed separately by both major South Australia political parties as state governments in the 2000s, was eventually killed off by a fierce backlash.
In 2002, Liberal state government premier John Olsen proposed turning Victoria Park into a precinct for racing both horse racing, connected to the area from 1838, and car racing, starting with the Australian Grand Prix 1985 to 1995 and the Adelaide 500 from 1999. The Olsen government proposed a 2,500-seat grandstand in Victoria Park, incorporating permanent racing car racing storage, to be placed to the south of the Victoria Park horse racecourse grandstand from the early 1880s.
The new grandstand was to have 52 pit garages for car racing, a betting area for horse races with catering and dining areas, lounges, viewing terraces and a concourse. A media centre, corporate suites and a control tower were to be incorporated. Originally to cost about $24 million, by 2004 the plans expanded to include other sports such as cricket, soccer and even in-line skating. The horse track would be rebuilt and a the new grandstand made double-sided – all to cost about $34 million.
Besides bolstering Victoria Park as a horse race venue, the new grandstand was intended to avoid some of the expense of building and dismantling infrastructure for the four-day Adelaide 500 car racing very year.
With a change of state government but with the same intent, Labor treasurer Kevin Foley, in 2006, unveiled a “sleek new grandstand”, 250 metres long, at Victoria Park. Adelaide Parklands Authority rejected the plan in 2007 and, next year, Adelaide city council resisted pressure from the state government, horse racing and motorsport interests, to also vote against the proposal.
The state government in response abandoned its upgrade plans for Victoria Park. But, in 2008, the Liberal party state opposition, led by Martin Hamilton-Smith, put forward a bill to revived the new grandstand plan. Hamilton-Smith said the government was opposing the bill because of pressure to have only a temporary grandstand rather than risk losing the seat of Adelaide at the next election. Foley said he had been wrong to seek a permanent new grandstand that would have trampled on the interests of people living near Victoria Park and in the seat of Adelaide.
The first effect of the 2008 decision was the South Australian Jockey Club abandoning horse racing at Victoria Park and moving to Morphettville. This opened the way for Adelaide city council announced a $20 million upgrade of Victoria Park, converting it into a “people’s park” with wetlands, community sports areas and walking tracks. The temporary motor racing grandstands continued to be built each year when the Adelaide 500 event resumed in 2022.
