Neighbours slam location of new Brisbane primary school at former Toowong Bowls Club after floods

Local residents have come out swinging at the location of a “desperately” needed new primary school in Brisbane’s inner-west after the area was heavily flooded in the recent deluge.

Neighbours of a planned new $90 million inner-west primary school have raised concerns about the choice of location, after the area was heavily flooded in the recent weather disaster.

Locals near the former Toowong Bowls Club site, adjacent to Perrin Park, say the area was inundated in the recent weather event, with a strong smell and mud damage still prevalent a week later.

Graham Legg, who has lived opposite the site for the past 13 years, since the nearby Toowong Creek breaks it banks several times a year, and said it “beggars belief” the location had been chosen for the new school.

“Given the ongoing clean up, mud and smell a week later I can’t imagine parents being happy to drop children off to a school in such an unsafe environment,” Mr Legg said.

“When Toowong Creek floods again, and it will, there will be chaos at any school built near the park.”

Flood waters at the Toowong Bowls Club in 2013.

The location of the new inner-west primary school – set to be the state’s first vertical primary school – has been a hotly-debated topic.

While the Indooroopilly State High School had appeared the likely contender, staunch opposition from local residents quashed the option, with the proposed opening date pushed back to 2024 to allow for more consultation.

In December, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the location and the former Toowong Bowls Club was a “great location”.

State Greens MP for Maiwar Michael Berkman said he “completely understood” why locals in his electorate were concerned.

“I visited the old Toowong Bowls Club site on Saturday 26 February as the river was rising and again in the aftermath to see the damage for myself,” he said.

“While the site is on higher ground than Perrin Park and the Taringa Community Garden, it did go underwater up to waist height at the old Bowls Club building.

“It was distressing to see and smell the impacts from the flood, and I completely understand why locals are worried.”

State Greens MP for Maiwar Michael Berkman understands local residents concerns over the school’s site. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

Education Minister Grace Grace said there had been two rounds of community consultation, as well as “significant” studies into flooding, along with other areas to inform the selection of the site.

“My department has undertaken due diligence on the site and is well aware of the impact of overland flow and flooding from the river,” she said.

“The due diligence has found that a design solution is required to ensure flood impacts are minimised and that emergency access to and from the site can be adequately secured.”

Mr Berkman said residents had been raising concerns about the areas flood potial since it was first proposed last year.

“I’ve raised them repeatedly with the Education Minister and the Department. I am working to arrange an urgent briefing from the Department about their technical analysis on flood mitigation,” he said.

The former Toowong Lawn Bowls Club at Perrin Park, Toowong, in 2021. Picture: Richard Walker

But Mr Berkman also said the area “desperately” needs a new primary school, to take pressure off nearby Toowong, Indooroopilly and Ironside state schools.

“Since 2017, I’ve been arguing that the State government should have acquired a new site for school rather than building it on existing public land,” he said.

It’s clear that neither the Toowong Bowlo site nor the ISHS campus are ideal.

“With this in mind, if the State Government continues with their plan to build the school at the old Toowong Bowlo it’s essential that they plan for the impacts of flooding both on the school site, and on Heroes Avenue which floods regularly.”

Mr Berkman also said he had visited Milton State School on Friday, March 4, and was pleased to see how their new buildings had survived the floods.

It’s engineered and constructed to sit above the flood line and was almost completely unaffected. Milton SS is closed while damage to the old buildings is repaired. I know that the designs for the new school will meet the same or higher standards.