Harris Park is set to become a more inclusive location for female players with new changerooms set to be built. Photo: Wagga Wagga City Council.
One of Wagga’s busiest local sporting grounds is set to move into the 21st century with more than $950,000 in upgrades coming its way.
Harris Park, mostly used for rugby league in winter and cricket in summer, has been the subject of criticism due to its lack of female changeroom facilities.
Wagga Rugby League looked to address this in 2022 when it received the $955,000 from the NSW Office of Sport to demolish the current facility. At the time, WRL chairman Warren Barclay said a rebuild would hopefully be fit for purpose for the next 60 years.
Due to COVID-related staff shortages, the project was put on hold until recently.
Wagga Wagga City Council has since said it will also contribute funding to the project.
“Council has endorsed the agreement between the Office of Sport and Wagga Rugby League to deliver renovated and new amenities out at Harris Park,” Wagga Wagga City Council’s Manager City Growth & Regional Assets Ben Creighton said.
“As previously announced in past years, the Office of Sport and Wagga Rugby League have been working on this project for probably two to three years now, but ultimately a decision was made for the council to become a party to that agreement and also contribute some funding to that development so that we can make sure that it happens over the next 12 to 18 months.
“It is an important facility in an urban area in the city, it provides a really important role for both cricket and NRL, as well as just general community use.”
Mr Creighton highlighted the importance of delivering amenities that fall in line with the values and needs of Wagga’s sporting community, including the introduction of female-only changerooms.
“The redevelopment of these amenities is absolutely worth it. In particular, the fact that this is renovating and upgrading a facility that was constructed in the 1960s and it’s fair to say, is well beyond its used by date.
“We have a lot of female sporting activity now in Harris Park, which, at the moment, the facilities don’t cater for that at all. By doing this upgrade, we’ll then have much more female-friendly facilities, which will actually enable better participation for all codes that utilise the fields.
“Female participation in sports is exploding exponentially at the moment, and over the last … if you look over the last 10 years, the council has really put a lot of investment into ensuring our facilities can cater for that.
“This facility upgrade will really enable any females who are participating to actually feel safe and comfortable when they’re participating in their chosen sport.”
