$30 million amphitheatre for the arboretum?

Can anyone else see the folly in dropping $30 million on an outdoor ampitheatre that will soon be next door to the Molonglo residential developments? The NIMBY’s will have it shut down in a heartbeat.

The Arboreatum, a fantastic place and somewhere that will be a major site for Canberra in the future. From what I heard, the $30m was going to have a significant element of donations from Greek Australia. Who cares anyway. Its got to be a positive result.

wildturkeycanoe said :

Oh my flipping gawd!! [pause for effect]
Did Canberra suddenly win Lotto? Is the government trying instead of bailing out the Greek economy, to relocate them here at our expense? Why does it need to go up and down? Sounds more like something that belongs at Questacon or Wonderland, not in the hillsides of Canberra.
My biggest gripe with this, is that this ridiculous cost to taxpayers would be better spent on something important like our health system. My wife has been trying to contact Calvary hospital for the last 2 days to check on some paperwork in order to get my daughter’s thumb looked at by an orthopedic surgeon. Nobody answers the phone, even though they tell you that your call is “very important”. You can’t leave a message to call you back before it just leaves you hanging on without any progress. For a fraction of the $30M, they could hire someone to answer their damn phone.
Misappropriation of funds, nothing less.

ra ra ra my tax dollars ra ra ra

Every time any money is spent on anything someone complains about a specific situation where more money would help.

Sure, if nobody could get into a hospital, it would be stupid to spend money on a theatre. Or indeed a road, a school, or most anything. Surely this is not the norm and we have some of the best health standards in the world. I sympathise with your situation, but your message is absurd.

An amphitheatre in the arboretum is the perfect idea, giving us a landmark with a purpose. Something that isn’t a naff attempt to be like other cities but a celebration of what we do have.

Oh my flipping gawd!! [pause for effect]
Did Canberra suddenly win Lotto? Is the government trying instead of bailing out the Greek economy, to relocate them here at our expense? Why does it need to go up and down? Sounds more like something that belongs at Questacon or Wonderland, not in the hillsides of Canberra.
My biggest gripe with this, is that this ridiculous cost to taxpayers would be better spent on something important like our health system. My wife has been trying to contact Calvary hospital for the last 2 days to check on some paperwork in order to get my daughter’s thumb looked at by an orthopedic surgeon. Nobody answers the phone, even though they tell you that your call is “very important”. You can’t leave a message to call you back before it just leaves you hanging on without any progress. For a fraction of the $30M, they could hire someone to answer their damn phone.
Misappropriation of funds, nothing less.

There was an article in the Canberra Times last Friday that expands on that tidbit

http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/southern-hemispheres-best/2348675.aspx

Okay, NOW I am starting to love the arboretum!

I went to the arboretum earlier this year when they had an open day. The amphitheatre looks like it will be really cool. There’s wonderful views across the lake as well.