What the heck are the NSW Government and Venues NSW doing to fix the state of Wollongong's showpiece entertainment venue, the WIN Entertainment Centre? What is it going to take for those parties to realise this much loved and used community facility is in dire need of immediate upgrade?
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A plan to refurbish the WEC proposed by the member for Wollongong Paul Scully during the 2019 election was dead in the water when the Liberal premier Gladys Berejiklian retained power. When Gareth Ward's title of Parliamentary Secretary for the Illawarra was removed in favour of a ministry we were sold that would give him greater powers in the halls of power to influence things for the Illawarra. Sorry, but we are not just seeing it.
The state of the WIN Entertainment Centre and the lack of action and investment is one of the biggest concerns for this city.
Instead we've been sold that a new vision would be coming for the WIN Entertainment Centre.
In 2016, influential stakeholders - including the council, Illawarra Business Chamber, Destination Wollongong, RDA Illawarra and the University of Wollongong - signed an agreement to once again push for funding and support for the project.
In August 2018, the government engaged KPMG on initial planning for a future Illawarra Sports and Entertainment Precinct, and consultation with a number of organisations around the community occurred.
Yet, as of February 2020, not one damn thing has happened. Nothing. At least, not publicly.
Two years wasted while we've had to endure embarrassments such as the situation on Sunday when a nationally-televised National Basketball League game had to be called off because of rain. It's an indoor sport for Pete's sake. It is high time Venues NSW and the Berejiklian Government got off their backside.
The leak in the roof was nothing more than a symptom of the disrespect and neglect that this venue and this community has been subjected to by this current NSW Government. Just bloody fix it.
