Wollongong - and the NSW government - risks being embarrassed on an international scale without urgent work to improve WIN Entertainment Centre's basic facilities.
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That's the message from Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery, who will highlight the centre's tired and substandard state at Monday night's council meeting.
"This building is now over 20 years old and hasn't had any substantial upgrades at all in that time," he said.
"I was sitting in the Southern Stars performance last month and the seats were just so uncomfortable, and I just thought it was appalling for all these people.
"It was such a brilliant show, with families from all around the region and southern part of the state there to watch their kids and grandchildren and I just thought it was so unfair.
"The WEC is the focal point of entertainment for the entire region and it doesn't meet the basic standards that people expect."
- Cr Bradbery
"The WEC is the focal point of entertainment for the entire region and it doesn't meet the basic standards that people expect."
Cr Bradbery said people needing to use disability access were forced to go "well out of their way - you've got to go via the bowels of the building to get there", and said the steep steel stairs leading to the higher and lower levels were prohibitive for many other people .
"This affects lots of people - those with disabilities and the elderly or other people with ambulatory issues," he said.
"The toilets also need to be upgraded for ease of access - they are well out of the way and not readily accessible."
Cr Bradbery said "immediate action" needed to be taken to fix these issues, as the city prepares to host the UCI world championships for bicycle road racing in 2022.
The entertainment centre is likely to be the focal point for this event, which will attract crowds and media attention from around the world.
"We have to get moving on this opportunity now, because time is fast running out," Cr Bradbery said, agreeing it would be an embarrassment for the city and state if the world's media were forced to use a facility without modern WiFi and digital media capabilities.
At Monday night's council meeting, Cr Bradbery will ask the council to write to the NSW sports minister to expedite the refurbishment of access, seating, toilets and the information and communication technology of the centre ahead of the UCI world championships in September 2022.
His mayoral minute also includes a request to expedite "an upgrade of the facilities for exhibition and conference opportunities, expanding the use of the WEC to include additional tourism and visitor activities".
The motion has attracted attention from state Labor MP Paul Scully, who said focusing on a short-term fix "amounts to nothing more than the white flag of surrender on a campaign that had widespread local support over many years".
In a letter to the mayor, Mr Scully said the council's primary objective must be a full upgrade of the facility - which Labor earmarked $50 million for at the 2016 by-election when he was elected.
This upgrade, which remains stuck in the early planning stages despite years of lobbying, would turn the WEC into a larger events and conference centre.
"I'm just concerned that any immediate work should not come at the expense of the city's long-term ambitions for this facility," Mr Scully said.
He also suggested Cr Bradbery write to Premier Gladys Berejikian, after sports minister John Sidoti stood aside from cabinet last week while the corruption watchdog investigates his property investments.
"We effectively have no minister looking after this at the moment," Mr Scully said.
"Overall, I just want to make it clear that we can't settle for anything less that the full upgrade, but I do agree that this basic stuff needs to happen quite urgently with the UCI event coming up."
"If your internet is not working at the hub of a global event that's going to look pretty stupid."
- Mr Scully
"If your internet is not working at the hub of a global event that's going to look pretty stupid."
Cr Bradbery said he remained committed to lobbying for the full upgrade, but believed the basic facilities were more urgent.
"I'm not surrendering anything - but I'm just saying there are short term remedial things that need to be put in place while we wait for these planned upgrades," Cr Bradbery said.
"We can't wait for this long term plan - which I agree also needs to go ahead for the sake of the city - for these works to happen.
"People need decent seats, better toilets and disability access and this needs to be dealt with now."
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Kate McIlwain
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
