Decade of broken promises: a 10-year anniversary of no work for this major ACT government project
28 August 2026
Canberra Times
By Caden Helmers, and Melanie Dinjaski
It will go down as the anniversary no one wanted to mark, but the ACT's new sports minister has flagged that a resolution to a 10-year headache could be on the horizon.
The Canberra ice sports community reluctantly marked 10 years to the day this week since ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr stood on the jetty at Lake Tuggeranong and announced a vision for a new ice rink in Canberra's south.
That moment on August 26, 2016 in the lead up to an election is seared into the minds of many, mainly because a decade later there's nothing to show for it.
Cruachan Investments and development partner Pelligra and the government have been locked in a back and forth for several years over the plans and costs of the project. The government said it would provide $16 million in funding, but the expected cost of the twin ice-sheet facility have blown out to $60 million.
Despite a standing committee's report in April giving a recommendation that the ACT government accelerate the southside ice sports facility, still no new rink has been delivered.