The Fremantle Dockers new Cockburn base is almost ready

THE Fremantle Dockers are set to relocate to the $109m Cockburn Aquatic at Recreation Centre (ARC) within weeks, but the community will have to wait a little longer to use the grand build at Cockburn Central.

During a tour of the facility for Premier Colin Barnett today, excited Dockers chief executive Steve Rosich said the “vision is almost a reality”.

“We’re really excited about the prospect of moving in here in just a few weeks time before the 2017 season,” he said.

“(Cockburn ARC) is as good as we’ve seen around the world and it’s most certainly the best we’ve seen in this country.”

While the Dockers will make the move to its new training and administration base soon, an eager community will have to wait until at least April before they can put it to good use.

Included among a host of features at the build is a range of indoor and outdoor pools and water slides, crèche and children’s activity areas, a community fitness gymnasium with program rooms for fitness training and a multifunctional indoor training stadium with six basketball courts and a 100m running track.

Mr Barnett said it had no peers in terms of a community recreation facility jointly built with a professional sporting outfit.

“This is not only world standard, I doubt it could be matched anywhere in the world,” he said.

“Members of the community will revel in the sports facilities.

“I was particularly impressed by the aquatic facilities.

“For the Fremantle Dockers, without any doubt, you’ve got the best training facility of any AFL team.”

Contributions have come from State and Federal Governments, the Dockers and Curtin University, with the City of Cockburn pouring in $72.85m.

Mayor Logan Howlett said partnerships meant those involved could dream big.

“With those partnerships … we have the best facility in Australia for our community and the elite sporting club that is here and all those elites that will come to use this facility over time,” he said.