Gabba West proposed as main venue for 2032 Brisbane Olympics

With the stadium race heating up ahead of the 2032 Olympics, the latest entrant claims building a ‘Gabba West’ is the “obvious solution” to the ongoing conundrum.

Kirk Studio Architects GABBA Stadium proposal for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Picture: Kirk Studio

A tunnel under Vulture St and a second Gabba is the “obvious solution” to solve Brisbane’s Olympic stadium problems, a new submission insists.

Kirk Architects is proposing ‘Gabba West’ be built above the Woolloongabba Cross River Rail site to sit alongside the current, smaller, Gabba.

In a joint proposal, Kirk director Rickard Kirk and principal Andrew Magub say the near-empty site is the “most accessible site in the city”.

Gabba West would be a new 60,000-seat stadium built above Vulture St after minor land acquisition, while the current Gabba would be retained to provide warm-up, support and ancillary functions during the 2032 Olympic Games.

“Importantly the Gabba West site already has the major transport infrastructure in place – unlike all the other speculative siting options proposed,” Kirk said.

The stadiums would be across the road from each other.

“It is not circumstantial the city built its primary sporting facility here in 1890 and it is not by chance that the Cross River Rail Station is located here as well.”

Mr Kirk and Dr Magub say their proposal to effectively duplicate the Gabba avoids the emotional issues of vacating East Brisbane State School and the displacement for cricket and the AFL.

They said Victoria Park had “a number of fatal issues” including isolation from existing major transport networks and noise next to one of Brisbane’s major hospitals.

They argue Suncorp Stadium was too small and QSAC was “almost totally void of any major transport networks and amenity”.

It’s proposed the original stadium site could be transformed into housing and a park after the Olympics. Picture Kirk Studio

Dr Magub noted the Woolloongabba Cross River Rail site was owned by the state government, needed minor resumption of land and could keep the Gabba operational until 2032.

He said the current Gabba could be downsized and the space around the field repurposed or sold for housing.

It is the latest proposal put forward by architects as the state government’s 100-day review of Games infrastructure continues.