After 3 years of heavy planning and numerous government applications, building is soon to commence at Rockhampton Basketball's Hegvold Stadium.

The project involves a conversion of the current stadium and 2 outdoor courts into a 2-court multi-purpose indoor centre.

The exterior plan

By student reporter Kathryn Greensill.

The development is currently awaiting approval from the Rockhampton Regional Council, which is expected to be awarded in a matter of days.

Ian Weigh, president of the committee behind the project is hopeful that the stadium's expansion will attract new members.

"There's currently about 500 members and hopefully we will double that".

Hegvold Stadium was originally built in 1974 and Mr Weigh is confident that the new development will be around for some time.

"If anything I'd like to think that it will be there for another 50 years and Rockhampton Basketball will not have to worry about having a facility".

The project is expected to take approximately 6 months, and is possible due to funding from all levels of government.

The interior plan

The Queensland Government is providing some funding to assist in the roofing and electrics of the existing courts as part of the riverbank upgrade scheme.

The Commonwealth Government is providing funding towards the floors, walls and joining of the courts, as promised in the last federal election.

Rockhampton Regional Council is also committing some money to the development.

Members of Rockhampton Basketball Incorporated are also taking part with their own fundraising initiatives. This has so far included a Krispy Kreme Donut drive where 18,000 donuts were sold in a day and a half, as well as some other more traditional choices such as raffles and barbeques.

The stadium will not have to close except during the actual joining of the courts. Mr Weigh is hoping that there will be no interference with The Rockets or Cyclone's home games during the ABA season, as this part of the expansion is scheduled to happen between seasons.

The Wollongong Hawks versus Gold Coast Blaze NBL pre-season match, scheduled at Hegvold in September should not be affected by the expansion, as, according to Mr Weigh, this game will be held during the first stage of development.

The existing stadium

"Stage one is the roof over the existing courts, which won't affect the existing Hegvold Stadium".

Weekly fixtures are also expected to carry on without interruption as these competitions have been split over several nights to compensate for the temporary loss of the 2 outdoor courts.

"We've basically looked at the windows where we weren't using the indoor court before, and made use of those time slots, so now there's something on in the stadium virtually every night of the week and we are utilizing the facility a lot better than what we were," says Mr Weigh.

The plans for the new stadium include an entry foyer and an upstairs area that will overlook the courts.

Mr Weigh suggests that "The upstairs area could serve as a corporate box for ABL games, or for a place for parents to sit and relax whilst their children play".

The current outdoor courts

Mr Weigh estimates that the upstairs area, along with several rows of roll out concertina seating should bring the stadium's seating capacity from 700 up to around 2500.

When the building is completed Rockhampton Basketball is planning to hold an open day, for which several former Rockhampton Basketball Incorporated members are expected to be invited back to join the celebrations.

Mr Weigh is also hopeful that the new stadium will benefit the wider community as it will become available for the use of other sporting associations and become somewhat of a multi-purpose centre.

"We're intending to make it multipurpose and are trying to track netball for their showcase as well as badminton amongst various other sports".