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NT government presses on with Alice Springs multicultural centre as Arrernte elders say they were never consulted

39h

Summary

  • The Northern Territory government is building an $8.8 million multicultural centre at the old Alice Springs High School site in the Anzac Hill precinct, announced in February.
  • Construction began in the week before the article was posted, and heavy machinery has arrived to excavate the site.
  • Senior Arrernte elder Doris Stuart Kngwarreye and other custodians say they were never consulted and never gave permission for work at the culturally sensitive site.
  • Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro says the work is covered by a 2018 sacred site certificate issued for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Gallery of Australia and consultation is not required.
  • The Anzac Hill precinct was previously at the centre of controversy over the art gallery's proposed location there and the planned demolition of the Anzac Oval sports ground.
  • The centre's completion is forecast either in late 2026 by the government of the day or in 2027 by a government spokesperson.

Reactions

  • Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said there was no need to consult traditional custodians, saying 'That's the process — we don't have to, why would we?', and that the development will go ahead.
  • Doris Stuart Kngwarreye said the government is not listening, that the site is a women's site, and that all she wants is respect for the place.
  • Jodie Clarkson said she was among concerned residents who broke the news to the elder and has been visiting the precinct to bear witness, saying cutting red tape stops the Mparntwe custodians doing their job.
  • Multicultural Community Services Central Australia declined to be interviewed but said it was concerned about the location near a women's sacred site and is engaging with traditional custodians.
  • A Northern Territory government spokesperson forecast construction would be complete in 2027.

Timeline newest first

  1. Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said in Alice Springs on the Wednesday before the article was posted that a recycled 2018 sacred site certificate covers the multicultural centre work and consultation with traditional custodians is not needed.
  2. In the week before the article was posted, construction began on the multicultural centre at Alice Springs' Anzac Hill precinct, and heavy machinery arrived to excavate the site.
  3. Jodie Clarkson says a foreman showed her a 2018 Aboriginal Areas Protection Authority certificate issued for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Gallery of Australia, not for the multicultural centre.
  4. Jodie Clarkson says she and other residents broke the news of the construction to Doris Stuart Kngwarreye and her family, who had not been told of the work.
  5. In February 2026, the Northern Territory government made public its plan to locate the $8.8 million multicultural centre at the old Alice Springs High School site.
  6. Doris Stuart Kngwarreye says Arrernte people were upset when Alice Springs High School was built in 1953 without permission from traditional owners.

Sources newest first

  • Chief minister says 'we don't have to' consult elders on new buildabc.net.au· 39h

    Emma Masters reports for ABC News on the dispute over construction of an $8.8 million multicultural centre at Alice Springs' culturally sensitive Anzac Hill precinct, where Arrernte elders including Doris Stuart Kngwarreye say they were never consulted. Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro says the work is covered by a recycled 2018 sacred site certificate, that there is no need to consult traditional custodians — "we don't have to, why would we?" — and the development will go ahead.