Casey Fields is now an official campus of the team of the red and the blue, with the City of Casey resolving to execute an agreement between the Council, the Melbourne Football Club and the Casey Scorpions at its meeting of 2 June 2009.
Melbourne Football Club President Jim Stynes confirmed the strength of the affiliation, saying, ‘This is a great day for the Club. Casey Fields provides the world class training venue that we have been looking for – but it’s not just the training ground. What we have achieved to date is just the beginning. We look forward to a long and rewarding relationship with the City of Casey, and we plan to make a real and meaningful contribution to this great community.’
City of Casey Mayor Cr Geoff Ablett reiterated Stynes’ sentiments, saying, ‘The sealing of this agreement is absolutely fantastic news for the entire Casey community and is a historic moment in the history of our city as it’s an extremely rare occurrence for a council to partner with an AFL team.
‘The partnership will provide many significant long-term benefits for the Casey community including a commitment by Melbourne Football Club to deliver a comprehensive Community Partnership program for the next 30 years’, said Cr Ablett.
‘The Community Partnership program is a key benefit of the agreement and is one of the most intensive of any AFL club. It will see Melbourne Football Club undertake a number of activities at local schools, businesses and junior and senior football clubs at an estimated value of more than $630,000 per year’, added Cr Ablett.
As part of the agreement, the VFL pavilion at Casey Fields will undergo a $2.1 million extension funded by Council ($1.250 million), Melbourne Football Club ($150,000), the AFL ($175,000) and the State Government ($525,000) which will include an additional covered spectator area. Melbourne Football Club’s summer training operations, and training once a week during the football season, will be based at the pavilion for 30 years.
City of Casey CEO, Mike Tyler, said, ‘It’s fantastic news for the Casey community that after months of negotiations, a deal has been struck between all parties.
‘The Casey community is the big winner in this agreement with numerous benefits deriving from the Community Partnership as well as many other immediate benefits including enhanced match day facilities for sports clubs using the VFL complex at Casey Fields.’
Other benefits as a result of the agreement include:
• Reinforcement of Casey Fields as the elite Australian Rules venue in south-east Melbourne.
• A substantial upgrade to the VFL facility at Casey Fields.
• Access for non VFL clubs to larger change rooms and other enhanced match day facilities.
• Administration space for the Casey Scorpions.
• Office space for the continuing MFC Community Partnership staff.
• AFL players as community role models and inspiration for young footballers.
‘The Melbourne Football Club’s presence in Casey will not only provide a boost to local football clubs through the presence of elite footballers who will act as community role models, but the broader Casey community, including children, young people and the football-loving public, will also benefit from the identification with an elite AFL club, thereby building increased community pride’, said Cr Ablett.