Rattenbury's flawed stadium logic exposes short-sighted government approach

That's what this week has delivered after a failed pipe from a sewer pit led to a foul "stench" flooding the tunnel under Canberra Stadium at the Raiders game on Saturday, again igniting discussion about the ageing venue not being fit-for-purpose.

The campaign to have a new or upgraded Canberra Stadium began in 2009, and in 2024 the ACT is no closer to boasting a modern venue to the same standard as other major cities.

Instead, Canberran advocates for a revitalised stadium like Raiders coach Ricky Stuart and Brumbies coach Stephen Larkham continue to go blue in the face as their pleas for progress on behalf of the ACT sporting community, keep falling on deaf ears.

The ACT government finally announced in June it plans to spend more than $500 million to build a new 30,000-seat stadium at Bruce by 2033, with the final location of the project to be finalised later this year, following the completion of an incredible seventh study.

However, according to Greens leader Shane Rattenbury, that plan again needs to be re-considered.

Rattenbury told ABC Canberra his party is currently reconsidering the stadium plans as part of their policy development process ahead of the ACT election in October.

"We've got a stadium. It's not in the best of shape, but we've actually got one and there's other things we desperately need. So I think it's an interesting question of where it sits," Rattenbury, who didn't go to the Raiders game, said on Monday.

By that same logic should the ACT not widen or improve certain roads because a road already exists? Should hospitals not be built or current facilities not receive upgrades? Is a light rail line to Woden needed when there are buses already available on that route?

"The conversation the community needs to have is there's a lot of infrastructure that this city needs - we need housing, we need hospitals, we need better public transport, we need a new convention centre. I think one of the interesting discussions is what order should we need to do them in, and what do people think is the most important priority," Rattenbury added.

Just because Canberra already has a stadium - a venue which last had a major upgrade in the lead-up to the 2000 Olympics with smaller ongoing maintenance and improvements since - does not mean it can or should stand as is for eternity.

Rattenbury's comments promise to once again kick the stadium issue down the road, which after 15 years of doing the same has only seen construction costs go up and make completing the project an even bigger undertaking for government.

The short-sightedness of the ACT government was highlighted further this week when Sport Minister Yvette Berry said the idea of a roof on a stadium was not needed because Canberrans like going out in the cold.

The reality is the opposite, as the patron experience at Bruce in colder months negatively impacts crowd numbers and the overall sporting experience. Anyone who has sat in the cheap seats high in the Meninga or Gregan-Larkham stands during a winter night's breeze would know that thermals, beanies and hand-warmers can only do so much.

While the rusted-on supporters will likely endure the worst conditions just to cheer on their Canberran teams, it is hardly appealing to the fair-weather fan, tourists or families.

Independent senator David Pocock shared his frustration with the ACT government's lack of vision on radio too, and praised Stuart for bringing the subject to the fore once again.

"Ricky Stuart nailed it when he said no-one's saying to put a stadium ahead of health or education funding, but surely as the capital city - a city of half a million people in a region of over a million people - we can have a stadium that isn't the worst in the country - we could actually have a plan to have a stadium," Pocock said.

"Frustratingly we heard for a long time that we weren't getting things in Canberra because of the coalition government. My frustration now is there are no plans. There's no plan that could actually be funded by a federal government.

"Bruce Stadium will come to the end of its life whether we like it or not. It's ageing infrastructure. Let's look forward at what sort of city we want to be."