Senator the Hon Mathias Cormann

• Cockburn celebrates the opening of $109 million Aquatic and Recreation Centre
• New facilities will provide modern health and fitness services to the community, while also paying economic dividends to the region
• Coalition Government invested $10 million in the project

Cockburn residents today celebrated the opening of the new $109 million Aquatic and Recreation Centre, known as Cockburn ARC, with the facility set to pay social and economic dividends for the region.

Minister for Regional Development Fiona Nash said the Cockburn ARC would give the region new sporting and recreation facilities.

“I aim to help build the kinds of communities our children and grandchildren either want to stay in or come back to, and modern recreational facilities are a big part of that,” Minister Nash said.

“This world-class centre boasts pools right through to educational and research facilities, which is great for Cockburn and the surrounding region.”

WA Senator and Federal Finance Minister Mathias Cormann, who joined the community at the opening today, said the Cockburn ARC was a major investment in the region’s economy.

“This project has created 1,137 direct and indirect jobs and had a total economic output of $338 million during construction. This is a fantastic contribution to the economy in this region,” Senator Cormann said.

“When fully operational it is expected to attract approximately one million people each year, with user groups generating $12 million in ongoing additional expenditure per annum in the region.”

City of Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett said after more than a decade of planning and preparation, the City was immensely proud to deliver this fantastic facility to the community in Cockburn Central West.

“The $109 million Cockburn ARC is one of the largest developments of its kind in Australia,” Mayor Howlett said.

“It demonstrates the capacity of a partnership between local, state and federal government, a professional national sporting code, and an Australian public research university to deliver an environmentally sustainable community facility for people of all abilities.

“The ARC represents a new benchmark for contemporary recreation, community, elite sporting and educational facilities, which is also home to the AFL’s Fremantle Football Club team, the Fremantle Dockers, and its AFL Women’s equivalent.”

This project was jointly funded by the Coalition Government ($10,000,000), The Western Australian Government ($12,400,000), the City of Cockburn ($72,850,00), the Fremantle Football Club ($12,700,000), and Curtin University ($1,000,000).