Treasurer tight-lipped on Benalla Indoor Rec Centre funding

Funding for a rebuild of the Benalla Indoor Recreation Centre remains without a timeline, with Treasurer Tim Pallas tight-lipped in his response to a question from the Nationals Member for Euroa Annabelle Cleeland.

Ms Cleeland raised the rebuild of the Benalla Indoor Rec Centre with the Minister for Sport and the Treasurer in February, seeking an update on when the project would begin and if the funding would be included in this year’s budget.

The Treasurer responded to the question this week, only saying that funding details for all election commitments will be announced on budget day – failing to confirm a start date for the project.

The Nationals made a commitment to fund the rebuild if elected to government, which was subsequently supported by the Victorian Government following Ms Cleeland’s advocacy.

Alongside stadium user groups, Ms Cleeland collected over 400 signatures on a petition calling for a rebuild of the stadium, which was tabled in Victorian Parliament by Steph Ryan before the November election.

“It was great to have so many stadium user groups on the same page pushing the need for a rebuild of the facility with increased capacity,” Ms Cleeland said.

“The community drove this project. We don’t want to see anyone missing out on community sport because the resources aren’t there to support them.”

Ms Cleeland said it was important to keep the project on the radar of the government and push to get the funding confirmed ahead of this year’s budget.

“It’s important this project is kept on the government’s agenda, and we get this rebuild in progress as soon as possible,” she said.

“Flood waters ran through the building; the facilities simply can’t cope with the number of participants and the structure is incredibly dated. Benalla’s new stadium can’t come quick enough.”

The 2023-24 State Budget will be delivered on Tuesday, May 23.