Premier says final master planning for Olympic infrastructure underway

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has given an insight into how Queensland can avoid building unnecessary infrastructure for the 2032 Games.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has revealed infrastructure plans for the 2032 Olympic Games will be a “balancing act” as the Queensland Government looks at finalising venues for events.

Final master planning is expected to determine a swimming venue for the Olympics, as well as the potential for a new 50,000-seat stadium.

The Premier said practical solutions were needed to prevent unnecessary infrastructure.

“There’s a lot of options that we are looking at there, whether we utilise existing stadiums or whether there can be some collaboration between local, state and federal of a new around-50,000-seat stadium,” she said.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk

“But this is a balancing act, we don’t want to build big new stadiums we need practical solutions.”

Ms Palaszczuk said there was potential for a temporary swimming venue at the river city’s proposed entertainment precinct Brisbane Live, with discussions ongoing.

“Between 85 and 90 per cent of the venues are already in the southeast of our state plus utilising the Townsville Stadium as well.”

“It’s got to be practical and it’s got to be a part of the legacy – what the Olympic committee wants us to do, they want us to look at what we already have.”

It comes as Ms Palaszczuk officially opened the new Asia Pacific headquarters of Olympic venue design firm Populous.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk formally opens the Asia-Pacific headquarters of architectural design firm Populous with its global director Paul Henry. Populous is renowned for designing Olympic venues around the world. Picture: Dan Peled/NCA NewsWire

Populous managing director Paul Henry said the architecture firm had been involved in infrastructure for about 12 Olympic Games.

“There’s a lot of work to do to define what exactly is needed for the Olympics, and one of the beauties about the announcement now is that we have more time than any other Olympic city to actually prepare in a considered way,” he said.

“Look at the Commonwealth Games on what was done with Metricon Stadium; we have the permanent facility there and then we had the temporary seats to bump up the capacity just for the Commonwealth Games; that’s the kind of initiative and thinking that happens around major Games now.”