The ACT government could scrap plans for a new $350 million stadium in the city to instead build a smaller multi-purpose indoor arena on the site of the Civic Pool.
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ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr flagged a radical change to the government's City to the Lake vision on Thursday at a Legislative Assembly inquiry into the proposal of a new convention centre.
The government is keen to strike a deal with the Australian Sports Commission to buy Canberra Stadium and give it options to transform the city's sport and cultural landscape.
It's another twist to the government's plans to build a state of the art 30,000-seat stadium with a roof on the edge of Lake Burley Griffin to host the ACT Brumbies, Canberra Raiders and professional soccer.
Mr Barr revealed the options now include redeveloping Canberra Stadium on its existing Bruce site and cutting costs by building a 7000-seat arena in Civic for indoor sports, concerts, conferences and exhibitions.
It's understood the sports commission is locked in ongoing talks with the government about the future of Canberra Stadium, the AIS Arena and the AIS pool.
If the government strikes a deal to acquire Canberra Stadium, the AIS Arena and AIS pool, it could bulldoze the venues and sell the land or invest in a major upgrade at Canberra Stadium.
Mr Barr said that would allow the government to build a smaller arena in Civic to help Canberra attract concerts and host indoor sports.
"It [building an small indoor arena] would also have the advantage of being able to comfortably accommodated on the site without the need to radically shift the alignment of the network of roads around it," Mr Barr said.
"It could meet another need in the city. It's been observed by many that we miss out on a large range of live music because we lack an indoor venue with a capacity of more than 4000 for a concert.
"...There are a range of innovative solutions. You wouldn't rule it out, and it would provide additional capacity for convention activities while also meeting another infrastructure need for the city."
Mr Barr also floated the prospect of building an indoor-outdoor stadium on the Civic Pool site, which could be sectioned off to have arena facilities for small events as well as the scope to host rugby league, rugby union or soccer.
Mr Barr fronted the inquiry into the convention centre, saying the proposal would not be part of any territory budget "this parliamentary term".
The convention centre was proposed as part of the City to the Lake project now under the City Renewal Authority's precinct, with a block of land on Lake Burley-Griffin set aside, before the government in February officially rejected it.
The sports commission's asset review sparked concerns the AIS would leave Canberra, but it's believed the institute will remain in the capital.
The government signed a new Canberra Stadium lease in April worth $350,000 a year after a change to the previous $1 peppercorn arrangement.
The government will use the Canberra Capitals' women's basketball team as a Civic experiment when the club moves its home games to the National Convention Centre from next week.
It is hoped shifting Capitals games from Tuggeranong to Civic will draw bigger crowds and the model of a multi-purpose venue could end plans of moving NRL and Super Rugby games to the city.
However, the Mr Fluffy loose-fill asbestos clean up and a priority to build a light-rail network delayed the new stadium, with Mr Barr setting a new timeline of having it complete by the mid 2020s.
"If the [Capitals] are a great success in the city ... maybe that's the precursor to the further consideration to an arena rather than a stadium," Mr Barr said.
When asked if the government had identified other sites for a stadium in Civic or Woden, Mr Barr said: "It would probably mean staying at Bruce and redeveloping Bruce, subject to acquisition of that site, which is a live discussion with the Commonwealth Government."
