Gender-equal plans for Ikon Park

Carlton’s Ikon Park will become the first AFL facility in Australia where training areas for women are identical in size and quality to those for men.

The famous ground, historically known as Princes Park, will for a first time in 157 years provide an equal footing for all.

As stage one works at the ground neared completion — which included new change rooms, gym and medical spaces — stage two works were approved by the City of Melbourne at an April 13 Future Melbourne Committee meeting.

These included plans for new “away” change rooms and indoor training facilities, plus improved lighting (to ensure AFLW matches are broadcast-quality for TV audiences), spectator access, landscaping and connections into the ground.

Carlton Football Club CEO Cain Liddle said the club was “incredibly proud” of the impending works and paid tribute to the council’s partnership.

“[We will] be the first partnering LGA (local government area) and AFL football club anywhere in this country where female facilities are now identical size and quality to our male change rooms,” Mr Liddle said.

“Same size, same quality. Our athletes, male and female, will share the same gym, same aquatic facility, same football department.”

While Carlton’s men’s team play home games at both the MCG and Marvel Stadium, the women’s team plays at Ikon Park.

Works will see the facility become “the home of the AFLW”.

“No female will ever walk into the Carlton Football Club again and feel, in any way, any sense of inequality as the facilities for our men and women, now for the first time in 157 years will be totally equal,” Mr Liddle said.

The Pratt Stand is set to be demolished to make way for an indoor training field and new match day facilities, which would decrease the ground’s capacity from 24,000 to 22,000.

Deputy Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece said the upgrades were a “fantastic step forward”, a sentiment echoed by Cr Jamal Hakim.

“Sport plays such an important in role our community but also here in supporting gender equity, and that cannot be understated,” Cr Hakim said.

“So, I hope this is only the start to see the changes in physical forms that can be considered and championed around the country for women in sport.”

What do the works mean for locals?

Lord Mayor Sally Capp indicated that local groups, too, would benefit from the new facilities.

“I note that leadership around the change rooms and facilities for male and female participants, and that is really built around the elite teams that play at Carlton, but also has benefits for the community groups that can, and will, into the future be
able to use those facilities,” Cr Capp said.

There were also interest around the ground’s new “broadcast lighting”.

The submitted plans claimed it would “less obtrusive” than existing lighting and would be permitted on no more than 12 occasions in any one calendar year.

It also stated that all broadcast lighting would operate in accordance with agreed standards, which included a curfew time of 11pm.

The council also confirmed that existing parking would not be affected under plans, and that the primary entry point to the site would remain on Royal Parade.

Existing secondary entry points around the ground would not be altered.

Mr Liddle said the overall designs were “strongly considerate to the history and heritage of the area” •