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All set for Demons in Casey
Paddy Higgs
02Jul08
MELBOURNE Football Club's move to Casey Fields could be confirmed by the end of this month.
Casey Council chief executive Mike Tyler said a "productive meeting" last week had greatly advanced the chances of a deal being reached.
Mr Tyler previously was less confident.
He raised concerns last month that the drawn-out negotiations could hinder the chances of getting the Demons, as any development at Casey Fields would have to be completed in time for pre-season kick-off in November.
Mr Tyler told the Leader talks between Casey, Melbourne, the Casey Scorpions and the AFL on Thursday "proceeded quite smoothly". "I think we're getting reasonably close to getting the thing sorted out," he said.
"Now we've got 'i's to dot and 't's to cross (with the) legal contracts and all that sort of stuff, which will take some time, but I would think towards the end of July we would have it signed off."
Details of the AFL club's move to Casey has been subject to conjecture but, based on documents seen by the Leader, the project will cost $1.6 million, with council contributing $750,000.
Melbourne will chip in $500,000, while the project was allocated $350,000 in the State Budget under the VFL Complex Upgrade Project.
Mr Tyler said the works at Casey Fields Oval No. 1 would include the upgrade of training facilities, made possible by the extension of the pavilion to the northern goals.
Melbourne's football department would also be housed at Casey Fields until the club relocated to the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium in 2010.
The wooing of the AFL club has come under fire from some councillors including Kevin Bradford and Rob Wilson.
