Dozers to roll at Birkdale precinct as whitewater venue slammed as $80 million ‘white elephant’

A bayside council is poised to approve earthworks for a tract of land where an Olympic venue will be built, despite some objections and after a $34 million increase to its overall capital works budget.

A bayside council is poised to approve earthworks and the first stages of a $300 million precinct, which will one day house an Olympic whitewater rafting venue, despite community objections.

Redland City Council is expected to approve the Birkdale works at its meeting on Wednesday, when it also plans to bump up its capital works budget by a whopping $34 million.

The council will carry over the massive capital works spending for a range of projects including the first stages of the Birkdale project on council-owned land, where the state government plans to build the Olympic venue.

The state government, which will design and build the whitewater stadium, has stipulated that a serviced and accessible area of the precinct must be ready by mid-2024 so construction of the whitewater centre can start.

The federal government has also guaranteed funding for the venue’s construction with costs for site works and initial infrastructure to be refined.

But an alliance of community groups labelled the Olympic venue plans as a potential “white elephant” and called on Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk to instead use an existing whitewater rafting facility at Penrith, NSW, for the 2032 games.

Redland City Council is poised to approve earthworks and the first stages of a $300 million precinct, which will one day house an Olympic whitewater rafting venue.

The alliance asked the premier to intervene and stop “wasting up to $80 million” building a similar stadium on the council land at Birkdale.

The federal government sold the land to the council on the conditions that the site’s heritage and wildlife were protected.

The council plans to spend $12.7 million this financial year on the precinct with site preparation and earthworks on a “community” section, including restoration work on Willards Farm, set to start in the first half of 2023.

Those works will include a new access point and access road.

Also at the site, the council plans to build a “food precinct” around the heritage-listed Willards Farm along with a “communications hub” at a WWII radio station, walking and cycle paths, a water play area, a lagoon and an indigenous centre.

An internal ring road will also be built at the site, the subject of a court case, along with carparking for 800.

Redland council will present a 45-page study on developing the Birkdale site to its meeting on Wednesday.

The document, compiled after surveying public expectations for the 62ha site over the past two years, said “collectively” feedback indicated the community and stakeholders were “highly positive” about all the proposals.

The council said 1203 online surveys were submitted and about seven out 10 respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the Recreation and Adventure Sports Hub sector of the site provided the right mix of facilities, spaces and activities.

“Overall, respondents were very happy with the activities and experiences put forward across the precinct with 73.9 per cent of respondents either agreeing or strongly agreeing that it will meet the needs of the Redlands Coast community, both current and future generations, and that it will benefit the whole region,” the council document said.

“Of the 15 per cent of respondents that disagreed or strongly disagreed, feedback indicated their main areas of concern were around the ongoing maintenance cost, as well as concerns that there is not a pre-existing whitewater industry in the region.

“Comments indicated respondents would like to understand more about the opportunities to use the facility outside of the Olympics and Paralympics.

“Additionally, respondents were interested in understanding the impacts of this facility on the environment and how this might be minimised as well as what the ongoing costs of maintenance would be.”

Willards Farm is a historic house at the Birkdale precinct, which will also one day house an Olympic whitewater rafting venue.

However, the alliance of Redland community organisations claimed the whitewater rafting venue contravened the International Olympic Committee policy of using existing facilities.

The Community Alliance for Responsible Planning, known as CARP, said the venue was unnecessary, unwanted and an irresponsible waste of money.

CARP president Lavinia Wood said Olympic policy was designed to avoid a legacy of “white elephant facilities”, with the IOC recommending events should be moved to existing stadiums even if they are outside the host city.

“The existing Olympic 2000 Whitewater Stadium in Penrith, New South Wales, should be used in 2032 and we believe Penrith City Council would be receptive to the idea,” Ms Wood said.

“Building a new whitewater stadium will also damage the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games’ capacity to meet contractual IOC obligations to operate as ‘climate positive’,” Ms Wood claimed.

“Using the existing Penrith Whitewater Stadium would free up $80 million to $100 million as overall Olympic savings for use in rebuilding storm-devastated communities.”

Community group Redlands2030 said consultation showed residents wanted to protect the cultural heritage of the Birkdale site.

A Redland City Council graph showing its capital expenditure increase from July 2022 to July 2023.

Koala Action Group president Debbie Pointing said the Birkdale land was a safe haven for koalas and a whitewater stadium could compromise the council’s 2019 Conservation Agreement with the federal government over the purchase of the land.

“The proposed whitewater stadium is surrounded by core koala habitat. This contravenes IOC Policy which states new venues should not be located in or adjacent to statutory nature, cultural protected areas or World Heritage sites,” Ms Pointing claimed.

Birkdale Progress Association, which has battled to protect the indigenous cultural, European and natural heritage values of the Birkdale site, said the precinct’s historic Willards Farm and the US Army-built World War II Radio Receiving Station should be protected.

President Pam Spence said the aboriginal cultural and European heritage values should take precedence.

“This is the intergenerational legacy we want to create and is not about being anti-Olympics.

“It’s about recognising the most valuable and lasting contribution that Redland City Council can make to the 2032 Olympic Games, and to the Redlands community.”