A trust should be established to develop and implement an ''investment ready'' plan for a new ACT convention centre, according to the Canberra Liberals.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Business groups hope the construction of a major convention centre to be known as the ''Australia Forum'' will boost Canberra's economy by attracting national and international conferences and events.
Under their parliamentary agreement, the ACT's Labor-Greens government has promised to progress the Australia Forum initiative to the point where it is ''investment ready'' for consortium partners.
Liberal economic development spokesman Brendan Smyth on Wednesday will propose a resolution in the Assembly calling for the establishment of a trust to drive the project. Mr Smyth said the trust would be formally established next year and be directed to complete a plan for the convention centre by June 30, 2015.
''What we want is for the trust to have set up, by June 2015, the actual plan for the convention centre and the implementation model to make it happen,'' Mr Smyth said.
He said demand for conference and convention space was strong and would help position Canberra for more economic growth.
''This is the sort of activity that induces business,'' he said. ''If there's a new convention centre, there's no reason not to believe that you won't get one, two, three, four new hotels.
''There are a number of hotel chains that like to be associated with convention centres in national [capitals] that aren't here … They're not here because they don't see the market as big enough and they don't see that we've got a convention centre worthy of the events.''
The most likely site for the convention centre is next to City Hill.
Mr Smyth said the ACT government needed to be in a position where it could confidently seek funding for the centre from the federal government or private investors.
''I think 'investment ready' is the point where you can go to the feds and say we've got a body that's responsible for delivering it,'' Mr Smyth said.
''We've done a functional brief that says this is the capacity and the things that we expect it to have, we've picked a site that we know works and has room for expansion.''
The Canberra Convention Bureau has urged the government to commit sufficient funds to ensure the project will be ''investment ready'' by 2016.
In a pre-budget submission to the government, the Convention Bureau said Canberra did not have a convention centre that could meet current or future market needs.
''Now that the most appropriate site has been determined, it is crucial that the ACT government progress the Australia Forum to investment ready status,'' the submission said.
''The development should be a priority for the ACT government, not only to support the growth of the business events industry but as a broader economic driver and catalyst for the successful realisation of the City Plan and City to the Lake plan.''
The Canberra Business Council has been lobbying for the Australia Forum for several years.