Premier wages war on Adelaide City Council over event ‘restrictions’
Premier Peter Malinauskas has slammed a city council decision he says will “stifle” events held outside Adelaide Oval.
Premier Peter Malinauskas has taken aim at the Adelaide City Council again after publicly criticising its take on park lands developments and on the weekend overriding its AI parking ticket regime.
In a media conference called today, the Premier slammed updated Adelaide City Council rules placing restrictions on events held at the Village Green outside Adelaide Oval. This would mean events could be held at the green on six days of the year with no event allowed to run more than three consecutive days .
Malinauskas claimed because of the council’s restrictive rules, two significant events had been held on the green in the past ten years.
“It beggars belief that the Adelaide City Council has done it again. They have done it again,” he said.
“The Adelaide City Council last night has made a decision to stifle the ability of Adelaide Oval to be able to use its facilities in a way that is good for our city and our state as a whole.”
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The latest shellacking follows the Premier on the weekend overruling the council’s use of two cars with AI-detection cameras issuing parking tickets throughout the CBD.
Council’s decision to ban fossil fuel advertising in the city and its opposition to Adelaide Park Lands works on the North Adelaide Golf Course and MotoGP street circuit has also drawn the wrath of the state government in previous months.
At an Adelaide City Council meeting on Tuesday night, it decided events would be allowed to occur at Village Green on a maximum of six calendar days per year and included retaining the existing 15,000-person attendance limit, which could be reviewed on a case-by-case basis subject to a risk assessment.
Two major concerts have been held on the green in the past 10 years, with Midnight Oil playing a sold-out show in 2017 and Icehouse in 2022.
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The state government wants six events allowed, each up to three days in length, for a total of 18 days each year.
Malinauskas said the state government would “look at all our options really carefully” in conjunction with Adelaide Oval State Management Authority to overturn the council decision.
“The moment the going gets tough, they’re out, and now they’re protesting against it. Just like they protested against Adelaide Oval, just like they protest against the footbridge, they protest against the O-bahn Tunnel, they protest against the V8s, they’re protesting against the MotoGP, all of these things are contributing to the vibrancy of the city,” Malinauskas said.
But Adelaide City councillor Phillip Martin said the Premier was “trying to give the impression that we are disagreeable when we are in agreement”.
“We followed the government’s own legislation, conducted a consultation, and we have agreed to every measure that was put to us by the government on behalf of the Adelaide Oval Stadium Management Authority,” Martin told InDaily.
“I can’t understand what the Premier is complaining about, other than that we have helped him in every possible way. The city is pro-event. We love events. We have no disagreement on that.
“The Premier is very angry with some members of council because of their opposition to LIV Golf and MotoGP. But that does not mean that council is unsympathetic to creating the vibrancy and economic activity that he and the council think for the city.”
Martin has called for “an end to the discourse”, and to “get on with making the city and the state a better place”.
“I think the way for that to start is for the Premier to reach out to council to try to establish a better relationship,” he said.
“Speaking personally, I’d love to have a beer with the Premier and talk about how we might do that. But I suspect I might be waiting a long time.”
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