Pinkenba facility still empty seven months after affordable housing promise

Premier Steven Miles has declared the Pinkenba quarantine facility a “$400m white elephant” built in the wrong location, after the federal government revealed it was looking at other candidates to take over the controversial facility.

• Editor’s view: Pinkenba delays unacceptable
• Your view: ‘Like an episode of Yes Minister’

Premier Steven Miles has declared the Pinkenba quarantine facility a “$400m white elephant” built in the wrong location, saying there were many reasons the facility had not yet been used for affordable housing.

Mr Miles’ comments on Friday came after it was revealed overnight the federal government is now considering other candidates to take over the controversial facility, seven months after Queensland’s Housing Minister promised to repurpose it into emergency housing.

Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon committed $10m to turning the 500-bed site into temporary accommodation in June last year, but The Courier-Mail can now reveal the federal department responsible for the facility, the Department of Finance, is considering leasing options elsewhere.

A spokeswoman for the department said it remained willing to help the state, but ongoing work was still required to “consider possible use cases, including by the Queensland government”.

Pinkenba Quarantine Facility. Source: Brisbane City Council.

“(The department) continues to also engage with agencies across the Commonwealth government regarding potential future uses for the Brisbane Centre,” the spokeswoman said.

In the meantime, the facility would remain in the hands of the Australian Department of Defence, which has been caretaking at the facility, she said.

“This arrangement will facilitate Defence use and provide capacity for resilience purposes if it is required to respond to future emergencies,” the spokeswoman said.

Mr Miles said the facility had long been a federal government “white elephant”.

“I’d love to see this $400m white elephant that Scott Morrison built used in some way that is useful for Queenslanders,” he said.

“That’s what we’ve consistently advocated, we’ve put forward different ideas.”

But Mr Miles said there were “a variety of reasons” why it was not particularly useful - including its location on Brisbane’s northside.

“Many of those (reasons) we said at the time, you’ll recall when there was a debate about building this facility. We indicated we thought the location was inappropriate,” he said.

“But we will continue to work with the Australian government to try to identify a way that we can make it useful for Queenslanders - after all taxpayers spent something like half a billion dollars on it.”

Queensland’s plans to convert the $400m facility were stalled last year when Treasury revealed it had not received an official proposal from the state requesting to repurpose the site, despite Ms Scanlon insisting she had sent one.

Finance Minister Senator Katy Gallagher said at the time that the government received only a letter, not a proposal, and that the two levels of government were still in discussions about future uses.

The Pinkenba Quarantine Facility at the Damascus Barracks in Pinkenba, Brisbane. pic: Lyndon Mechielsen/Courier Mail

But The Courier-Mail understands that since November, the state had requested a scope of works outline from the feds, with Ms Scanlon also meeting with members from the department of finance and QShelter at the Pinkenba site.

Following that meeting a third party was engaged to complete a site report, which will be paid for by Queensland, despite the facility still being under the care of the federal government.

When asked what and how long it would take until the site was ready to be used as temporary accommodation, Minister Scanlon said the government had put an offer of funding forward.

“We continue to engage with the Federal Government and have put an offer of funding forward,” she said.

A two-page letter dated August 9 2023 sent by Ms Scanlon, and seen by The Courier-Mail, asks the federal government to explain what work needed to be done on the facility to bring it up to housing standards, with Minister Scanlon admitting it was “difficult” to articulate a formal proposal without proper guidance.

Housing Minister Meaghan Scanlon – Photo Steve Pohlner

“It is disappointing that this work has not been forthcoming as it is very difficult for Queensland to be able to articulate a formal proposal without detail around the Centre’s particulars, held by the Commonwealth as the owner,” Ms Scanlon wrote.

“ … it remains unclear to the Queensland Government whether the Commonwealth’s stated intention to use the Centre for Defence and Emergency Management purposes precludes its use for a temporary housing solution.

“It is our view that the Commonwealth must determine whether Defence or Emergency Management use is consistent with temporary housing use, and quickly and clearly advise the Queensland Government and other interested stakeholders of the Commonwealth’s position on this threshold issue.”

18/1/2024: The Pinkenba Quarantine Facility at the Damascus Barracks in Pinkenba, Brisbane. pic: Lyndon Mechielsen/Courier Mail

Attached to the letter was another two-page annexure detailing Queensland’s formal proposal for the site, including whether it was practically possible, if sufficient safeguards could be put in place to protect future site use, a request the federal government fronts any extra costings needed beyond the $10m from the state and $1m from Brisbane City Council, and leasing and exit arrangements.

The Pinkenba quarantine facility - along with the $220m Wellcamp facility built by the state government - was effectively mothballed in June 2022 following advice from then chief health officer on the state’s quarantine management rules, before it was even completed.

Wellcamp housed about 730 people during the first half of 2022 before it was no longer needed, with the state government’s lease ending and the site returned to the Wagner family last April.