Review claims iconic Gabba should be knocked down but it will cost an eye-watering $3.4 billion

‘Second rate’, ‘ageing’ and ‘tired’ – a stinging review makes the Gabba sound like a down-market backpackers hostel that must be knocked down, writes Robert Craddock.

The Gabba has been subjected to a savage 3500 word take-down which calls for it to be razed to the ground … but it’s not dead yet.

No spell of fast bowling seen at the famous venue has been as hostile as former Brisbane Lord Mayor’s Graham Quirk’s harsh but fair take down of the Gabba in his review of Olympic venues.

Catering facilities are branded “second rate,’’ the loading docks “inefficient’’, on-field ambulance access non-existent, accessibility “poor,’’ ventilation “at the end of it’s life’’ and the general state of the venue “ageing’’ and “tired.’’

There’s seven sizzling pages of criticism which, if you didn’t know it was talking about the Gabba, might think it was referring to a house of horrors backpackers hostel where you reside for 50 bucks a night.

Quirk opens his summary by hitting readers in the eye with: “Due largely to its age, the Gabba stadium is in poor condition, is operationally inefficient, inaccessible and offers very poor amenities for athletes and staff.’’

Boom. All of this is true and in some ways it is a relief that someone in authority has finally said it.

Just last year at the Gabba, a power outage struck an AFL match between Brisbane Lions and Melbourne Demons. Picture: Albert Perez/Getty Images

But, despite Quirk’s plea to blow the joint up, it is still a huge call to knock it down.

Premier Steve Miles has a major decision to make – does he follow Quirk’s suggestion of a Gabba knockdown and a new stadium at Victoria Park or does he go elsewhere? To Suncorp? Or QSAC?

The problem with the Gabba is there is no ideal solution for its future.

In an ideal world it would be knocked down and rebuilt to host the athletics and opening and closing ceremonies for the 2032 Olympics but, according to Quirk, a full rebuild plus the cost of displacing the Lions and cricket would be $3.4 billion – that just won’t happen.

And, even if you did knock it down and moved AFL and cricket to Victoria Park, what then would you use the ground which one hosted the Gabba for? No-one knows.

So then you look at tarting it up but it’s so decrepit – Quirk claims it will officially at its used-by date by 2030 – that even that option is a wallet-draining $2 billion.

But one thing is certain. You can’t just let the Gabba sit there and decay. Quirk reveals that the minimum cost to keep the Gabba operational until the 2032 Games is $400-$500 million due to the fact it has a dodgy roof structure, corrosion in its steel structure and a heap of other issues with its lifts and air-conditioning.

None of this will surprise television executives who a few years ago had a blackout in the middle of a cricket Test for 20 minutes when an underground cable overheated.

The Gabba has never been closer to being knocked down but this story is not over.

Originally published as Review claims iconic Gabba should be knocked down but it will cost an eye-watering $3.4 billion