Brisbane 2032 explainer: All you need to know ahead of Premier’s Olympic venues plan release
How much will it cost? Will we get a new stadium? Will promises be broken? Your questions answered ahead of the release of the Brisbane 2032 venues plan.
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Brisbane’s final 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games infrastructure plan will be revealed by Premier David Crisafulli at The Courier-Mail’s Future Brisbane lunch on Tuesday.
Sporting and political leaders will also be sharing their perspectives, including Deputy Premier and Infrastructure Minister Jarrod Bleijie, Brisbane Organising Committee president Andrew Liveris, Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner and Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate.
WATCH THE ANNOUNCEMENT LIVE HERE
Lions chief executive officer Greg Swann, swimming legend Cate Campbell and Para-Canoe champion Curtis McGrath will also join the panel.
It’s shaping to be the most significant Olympic announcement since Brisbane won the rights to host it.
What is most likely to be announced at the Future Brisbane lunch?
A 60,000 seat Victoria Park venue is heavily favoured to be chosen over the Gabba, QSAC and other left-wing proposals.
The 100-day review panel is thought to have backed the 17,000-seat Brisbane Arena being built adjacent to the Gabba to host swimming in a drop-in pool, but whether the state agrees to build it is up in the air.
It is likely the Gold and Sunshine coasts, as well as regional Queensland, could host events.
Equestrian could be moved to Toowoomba Showgrounds and sailing could go to North Queensland.
Rowing could be held in the croc-infested Fitzroy River at Rockhampton.
What projects are most at risk?
We know that almost half the projects proposed in the initial Olympics bid four years ago are likely to be axed.
The Gabba is likely to be ditched, while former Premier Steven Miles’s plan to upgrade Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC) will be torn up.
It was slammed by Mr Bleijie for costing $2.25bn – $650m more than Mr Miles said.
It remains uncertain whether Suncorp Stadium will host football and rugby sevens events, as Football Australia pushes for a stadium at Perry Park.
While there were fears tennis could be pushed to the home of the Australian Open in Melbourne, Mr Crisafulli has hinted it will remain in Brisbane.
The Sunshine Coast rail through to Maroochydore could be under threat, with concerns the cost could explode to $20bn, equating to $530,000 per metre of track.
Will there be any new stadiums?
Yes, it is likely a new stadium will be built.
A 60,000 seat Victoria Park venue is heavily favoured to be chosen at the expense of other projects.
The 17,000-seat Brisbane Arena is also the other most likely major project, but it isn’t certain.
Victoria Park has been considered more economical compared to the redevelopment of The Gabba because of the ability to combine multiple venues into one area.
It is also a strategic and accessible location that will be able to connect to existing public transport including the yet-to-be-completed Cross River Rail.
Didn’t the Premier promise no new stadiums?
Yes, he did, at least a dozen times.
He rejected new stadiums five times in a single press conference in the weeks before the state election and a month later his deputy Mr Bleijie said the government had ruled them out.
Since last month, their language has shifted, with rejection of new stadiums disappearing in the nether even when the proposals were raised directly with them.
On Sunday, when asked if he remained committed to no new stadiums, Mr Bleijie emphasised on different goals.
“What we’ve committed to is to be not embarrassed on the world stage, to provide generational transport and road and rail infrastructure, and a delivery plan that Queenslanders can be proud of,” he said.
How much money will be spent on these projects?
The Brisbane Arena is projected to cost $2.5bn, while analysis by consultancy firm Arcadis expects a Victoria Park Stadium to cost $2.6bn.
The Gabba reconstruction was projected to cost $2.7bn, but Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner claims this was more likely to increase to $3.5bn and that ripping it down and replacing it was the equivalent of a new stadium anyway.
Archipelago’s Brisbane Bold Plan calculates the Olympic stadium, National Aquatic Centre and Brisbane Arena would cost a total of $6bn.
The aquatic centre is tipped to cost $650m.
The minor venue program is expected to cost around $2bn.
Will the Games still cost $7.1bn?
The funding is outlined only for venues, which means there will be other expenses beyond that scope, including security arrangements and accommodation.
Funding for Olympic villages has yet to be accounted for and the deputy premier on Sunday reconfirmed it would be a responsibility of the state government to fund it.
This had blown out to $3.5bn.
Therefore the games are going to cost well above $7.1bn, but even for venues it is unlikely to remain within the scope considering how much projects have blown out in recent years due to construction, workforce demand, and exceeding time frames.
If Brisbane Arena doesn’t go ahead, will the federal government redistribute its $2.5bn elsewhere?
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was pressed for a ‘yes or no’ to that in his Queensland visit last week, but he would not confirm either way.
He focused instead on the Brisbane Arena’s importance, saying it was the answer to the capital no longer being overlooked by international superstars such as Dua Lipa.
“We’ve got money in there for an arena that’s important for the Olympics, but it’s also important for post-Olympics,” Mr Albanese said.
On Sunday, Mr Bleijie would not disclose if he asked the federal government to put the funding elsewhere, but would say the overall Olympics plan, which had been given to the Prime Minister, would solve a lot of issues.
Why was this review needed and how is it different from past Olympic reports?
Graham Quirk handed his report to the Labor government on March 18, 2024 – only to have the main recommendation of a new stadium at Victoria Park ignored in favour of QSAC.
The LNP gave an election commitment to kickstart a review into the Olympics’ infrastructure within a month of forming government.
It followed through with this decision by forming a seven-member panel called the Games Independent Infrastructure and Co-ordination Authority (GIICA), which had 100 days to review and submit a final report to Mr Bleijie.
He has consistently blamed the Labor government for inaction on Olympics development in 1200 days since Brisbane was announced as the 2032 Olympics host city.
Mr Bleijie has had the final report for two weeks, and has submitted findings to cabinet on Monday for approval.
Will regional Queensland be included in the Olympics?
Ministers consistently have indicated regional Queensland’s inclusion in the games, and events have so far been speculated for regional cities such as Toowoomba, Rockhampton, and Townsville.
The concerns are whether moving events away from Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast would spread the Olympics too thin, and lead to further blowouts that taxpayers can little afford.
Last week it was reported sources connected to the Victoria 2026 organising committee and the doomed Commonwealth Games bid believed the failure stemmed from an unrealistic regional inclusion goal.
They warned Brisbane 2032 to not make the same mistakes.
What happens next?
We’ll have to move fast if Queensland is to deliver major infrastructure by the July 23, 2032 deadline.
Tenders for the construction of major venues are expected to be issued by the state government.
It will also reissue the tenders previously released by the former Labor government and then paused during the 100-day review.
If, as expected, the private sector is tapped to help deliver infrastructure, a public-private-partnership plan will also need to be developed.
Time is of the essence and there will be pressure to deliver this huge infrastructure program within seven years.
Watch a livestream of the event from midday Tuesday here and follow our live news coverage, presented by event partner TechnologyOne.
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