I am pleased to report we have taken another important step in our efforts to establish a new world class headquarters at the Thebarton Oval precinct.

At its council meeting last night, the City of West Torrens gave formal approval for our Club to start the next stage of the community consultation process.

Now we can move onto a more detailed consultation and planning process that will be essential in the ongoing development of our draft masterplan.

A masterplan sets a framework for how an area can grow and develop over the long term. It not only includes necessary technical detail but also creates a vision for how the site needs to work for everyone – our players, coaches, staff and members, as well as residents and the surrounding community.

As we have consistently said, we are committed to being a good neighbour and to delivering an outcome that provides tangible and long-lasting benefits for all.

That’s why we have been taking note of the feedback we have already received from some of you, plus our Member Engagement Panel will have a very important role to play. As you would be aware, the 10-person panel represents a cross section of our membership base and participants will no doubt put forward valuable and diverse views on our masterplan.

Not only will our proposed new administration and elite training headquarters be the best of its kind in Australia, the precinct will also create improved opportunities for you to watch our AFLW team play and our teams train, engage with our players and coaches, celebrate our heritage, and come together with other like-minded supporters.

There will also be a Masterplan Advisory Group created to ensure we capture the input of local ratepayers and residents. In addition, we will also be engaging with the council, state and federal government, business, sporting and community groups, and representatives of the Kaurna community.

We know that quality, publicly accessible space is high on the agenda and we believe our proposal – once fully detailed – will provide access to more green space than ever before. There will also be a range of other factors such as traffic and parking that will be carefully considered.

The public consultation phase of the masterplan will start shortly and we expect it to run well into the New Year.

While the City of West Torrens is supportive of our proposal, we are intent on the successful completion of community consultation prior to the signing of a lease. This is a complex and intergenerational project which we must get right.

As always, I look forward to providing you with further updates along this important and exciting journey. Thank you for your ongoing support.