Australian Open Venue Getting New 5,000-Seat Multi-Sport Stadium

Victoria State Treasurer Tim Pallas said that a multi-purpose 5,000-seat stadium is to be built at Melbourne Park "as part of efforts aimed at keeping the Australian Open grand slam tennis tournament at its current site," according to Peter Rutherford of REUTERS. Pallas said that work on the stadium, which is part of a A$271M ($205M) development program, would begin in '19. The stadium would be used for tennis, basketball, concerts and other sports, the report said. The tournament has "been shared" among Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and New Zealand since its inception in 1905 but has been played at its current home since '88. Reports in recent years have suggested that Sydney and int'l cities including Shanghai and Dubai "would be keen to host the tournament." But Pallas said that the slam "was going nowhere." He said, "It is a pretty good facility, but we want the best facility, not only in the nation but in the world" (REUTERS, 4/23).