Hot on the heels of the ground keeping International Cricket untill 2010....

The SCG will spend around A$50 million on modernising the venue, including plans for a 7000-seater stand on the site of the Hill.


This is interesting. Capacity is currently 44,900 for Cricket (providing all corporate boxes, members etc are full....). In reality capacity for your average international can be as little as 40,000 should some of the members and corporate types stay away.

I don't know what the hill holds now but it's got to be around 5000. I guess 47,000 is far better than the grounds capacity prior too the additional 1500 seats added in front of the Browongle (sp?) stand a few years back.

Anybody heard any more yet?


BTW, anyone watching QLD vs SA at the Gabba today will be enjoying a great look at the demolition work on the old Gordon Chalk Building (Lions Social Club).

Mirvac and SCG in final play on new Hill stand

Mirvac Group and the Sydney Cricket Ground Trust are in final negotiations over plans to construct a new, 7000-seat $52million grandstand on the old "Hill" area of the SCG.

Building industry sources believe the plans include development of a number of serviced suites, to be managed in a similar fashion to the corporate boxes already available at the ground.

Such a plan would represent a partial revival of a five-year-old scheme to build a 338-room, 3 1/2 star hotel at the new grandstand.

In 2000, it was reported that both Mirvac and Accor Asia Pacific had been shortlisted for the project, with Mirvac the frontrunner. Both Mirvac and the SCG Trust declined to comment.

The trust has a long-standing masterplan in place for the development of the SCG, but the internal document was described as "commercial-in-confidence" by a spokesman for the trust yesterday.

Last week, SCG Trust chief executive Jamie Barclay told The Australian that construction of the new grandstand would involve demolishing the existing Doug Walters stand with its 4500 outdoor seats and replacing it with 7000 premium seats.

There would be a minor increase in the ground's capacity to 46,000.

Mr Barclay said construction of the new grandstand would begin next year.

"The grandstand plugs the final hole and completes the concourse around the ground and it will increase seating capacity to where it should be. We are not looking to increase capacity, we are just interested in increasing the quality of the experience."

A development application has yet to be lodged with Sydney City Council, the consent authority for the site.

The trust is competing with Telstra Stadium for the right to hold international cricketing events over the next five to 10 years, after Cricket NSW announced a surprise tender in July.

The move to put the rights to tender has proved divisive with supporters of the historic ground including Kerry Packer, Alan Jones, Rod McGeogh, and former test cricketer Geoff Lawson.

Supporters of the move to the 81,500-seat Telstra Stadium, including former test captain Mark Taylor, argue it would draw bigger crowds from western Sydney.

If I remember correctly on the cricket this morning they said the when the new stand at the Gabba was built it would have more capacity then the SCG but the SCG would have more once again when its new stand went up.

They also said SCG had won the rights for international cricket for the next 10 years over Telstra Stadium - I'm glad, taking cricket away from the SCG would be just wrong.

Such a plan would represent a partial revival of a five-year-old scheme to build a 338-room, 3 1/2 star hotel at the new grandstand.

Interesting - would this be as a highrise above/behind the new stand?

^^ No, the hotel plan looked more like a top row of extremely big corporate boxes. I'm looking now, but I can't find the renders I used to have around the place :(

Also, the Gabba will seat around 42,000 when completed. It wouldn't have exceeded the capacity of the SCG, with or without the new stand.

haha, AAMI Stadium here in adelaide is STILL bigger than the scg and gabba when both have been upgraded. nar-nar-nah.

haha, MCG here in Melbourne is STILL bigger than the scg, gabba, AAMI Stadium when both have been upgraded. nar-nar-nah. :bleh:

lol

so it is for the common-who cares games!

If we wanna get really into it the MCG is bigger than two of any of those three combined :p. I like it how the SCG has kept all the older stands there though, it looks great and is the perfect backdrop to a Cricket match. The others (GABBA, AAMI, MCG to a lessor extent) I always picture as footy first stadiums compared to the cricket first SCG. Just my $0.02.

Stu

Just teasing. The SCG should retain its old pavilions. Thus stadiums around Australia are starting to look the same.

Exactly. There is no doubt that the MCG is the sporting pinnacle in this country, the hallowed turf and our greatest stadium, and one of the best in the World.

But the SCG still embodies the spirit of Australian sport, the ground has character and I would hate it to be taken away.... much like I still lament some of the stand losses at the MCG (except the Olympic and Ponsford... yuck, glad those are gone ;))

Stu