UPDATED ERWIN CHLANDA reports
The Aboriginal art gallery, now known as ATSIAGA, will be placed on about half of the present Anzac Oval car park in Wills Terrace.
ATSIAGA stands for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Gallery of Australia, suggesting the plan still has ambitions for national status.
It will be surrounded by “current and additional” car parking at the western side, the existing Anzac Oval, and a small open space adjoining the Over 50 premises.
There will be additional car parking where the old high school was demolished, to the north of the oval.
This was announced by Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro this morning.
“We have listened to the people of Alice Springs,” she says in a media announcement.
However there was no mention of the assertive campaign by traditional custodians who want the gallery to be built south of The Gap.
Ms Finocchiaro announced that design and scale of the gallery will be revised to a three-storey 4,000sqm building to ensure it fits within the wider Masterplan revealed this morning.
“This will be delivered to a budget of $149 million.
“The CLP will reinstate Anzac Oval as a rugby field with restoration works to commence and be complete in time for the rugby season in February 2025.”
PLAN AT TOP: The words “Anzac Hill” were added by the Alice Springs News to the government-supplied image.
UPDATED November 23, 2024 10am
The Alice Springs News understands that the revised scope and scale of the gallery appropriately reflects what realistically can be delivered within the allocated budget of $149m. The amount set aside for the initially planned 7000sqm was $150m.
We understand the NT construction company Sitzler are currently completing Stage 1 of the managing contractor contract and have been assisting with the current Master Plan and associated investigative works.
Sitzler was in July awarded the tender to construct the gallery.
Any future tenders are expected to be announced as the project progresses.
An insult. An embarrassment.
What was supposed to be a celebration of the culture of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Islander peoples has been made to play second fiddle to a rugby field and the mediocre vision of the local tourism lobby.
The rot set in with the intervention of former Chief Minister Michael Gunner, when he turned his back on the original Indigenous-led steering committee of experts. The process has gone from bad to worse ever since, causing offence and hurt to many Mparntwe custodians, sowing unnecessary division, culminating in this announcement.
The CLP has now made clear that it is no more capable than Labor of understanding the potential of this project, let alone delivering it.
Todays CLP idiots are as vile as Gunner’s Labor flogs who have no ability at all to display or implement common decency in our now destroyed town. As history shall record sadly.
How in hell did the Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro “listen to the people” in regards the Art Gallery. The CLP are not looking good folks at all. What an insult indeed. If Alice Springs provides what looks like being a facility of mediocracy, it will cement the idea that the CLP has absolutely no respect or vision for its people at all.
Are the plans for the Centre available or completed or is this just expected to be the way the people will continue to be treated. What a bleeding mess.
At least we have the electronic score board for the newly designed and enmeshed game of “Australian Rules Rugby Union Cricket.” What with the four sets of goal posts and cricket pitch already to go on the one oval! What could possibly go wrong? Jim McConville must be turning in his grave.
Then again, I suppose it would be reminiscent of the return of those lovely gravel roads in the CBD!
C’mon Leaders, lead for a change for benefit all of us.
We have not been consulted and neither have the custodians. It’s a disgrace and we will not let it happen.
I am a local and am working with a group of custodians and concerned locals to have the galley relocated south of the gap. You cannot have an Art Gallery for Indigenous people on a location that they are against.
Also fancy building on a car park, opposite the Todd Tavern and near the Senior Citizens club. Also Anzac oval is not just an oval to be blocked off by a gallery but an important part of our town and looks fantastic as if it. Regards Yvonne Driscoll.
Since this is a no win situation since money has already been allocated and any major change would most likely result in either massive monetary penalties or cost blowouts, why don’t we just call it quits.
There will never be a consensus amongst opposing sites. Labor voters versus Liberal ones, custodians versus non-custodians, people that will benefit from either location and on it goes.
All we have achieved is division, frustration and anger paid for by the taxpayer and decided by politicians with god knows what benefit to themselves.
Let’s create another big white elephant that will ensure millions of dollars will be spend every year to tie up funds like the once promised “saviour” Wildlife Park and all the other “great” initiatives while in fact the we ignore one of the most visionary comments made by one of our own local Mayor, Fran Kilgariff: Alice Springs will never be a great tourist destination again as it used to be.
It will instead be the infrastructure for the mining industry and the surrounding communities. She was and still is 100% correct with her prediction. Fight it as you wish or adjust accordingly. The choice is up to everyone.