A government takeover of the Phillip Swimming and Ice Skating Centre to control its redevelopment was among the options contemplated by officials before the site was sold to a developer, an audit has revealed.
The draft of a ministerial brief prepared in 2022 said the government "may wish to consider seeking to acquire the Crown lease" if it wanted to control the future of the site and noted "the era of a privately owned and operated swimming pool in Woden is inevitably coming to an end under the existing lease arrangement".
An Auditor-General's report, released on Friday, revealed the draft brief outlined several options for the site's future, including a preferred plan involving a 25-metre pool, indoor sports courts and "multipurpose facilities".
