Commonwealth Games athletes villages to deliver gold medal legacy for cheaper housing in Geelong, regional cities

Commonwealth Games supremo Jeroen Weimar reveals the legacy organisers want leave from the athletes village at Waurn Ponds and other regional cities.

2026 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee chief executive Jeroen Weimar speaking at a UDIA Summit in Geelong on November 18.

The 2026 Commonwealth Games athletes village at Waurn Ponds will be turned into social and affordable housing once the competition has finished, organising committee chief Jeroen Weimar has confirmed.

Mr Weimar, the games organising committee chief executive, told an Urban Development Institute of Australia summit in Geelong the four athletes villages would be retrofitted once the competition wrapped up in March, 2026.

Around 2500 athletes will be housed on the Waurn Ponds train station precinct site, while the government had also locked in locations at Ballarat’s old saleyards for 2300 athletes, for around 1900 athletes at the former La Trobe University site in Bendigo’s Flora Hill, and 1000 athletes at Morwell.

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Mr Weimar said the sites would soon all be in state government hands.

He said the villages would be designed initially to house the athletes, but organisers wanted to create a legacy for the community in the wake of the international event.

“We will then convert those premises into social and affordable housing,” Mr Weimar said.

“So, for example, in the athletes configuration there won’t be kitchens. We will provide our own food and entertainment for them.

The Waurn Ponds Station precinct will be the site of the Commonwealth Games athletes village in Geelong. The station rebuild finished in May.

“We will convert those residences from athletes accommodation into stand-alone one, two, three and four-bedroom units and then we will sell them both through affordable housing providers and social housing providers.”

Commercial kitchens and eating halls would be removed after the games, he said.

Details of that process would be worked through in coming years, he said.

“That is a significant kickstart in those regions about providing decent, high quality housing into those communities,” Mr Weimar said.

Committee for Geelong chief executive Jennifer Cromarty said is would be a great outcome.

“I think if that’s the outcome, the government would be able to get a bit of a return on their investment,” Ms Cromarty said

Kardinia Park will host the closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games

“That’s not a bad model because if the government is looking at greater density and building affordable housing, you’ve got to have a mix (of social and affordable housing).

“My understanding is the Commonwealth Games Federation has a prescriptive way of having things built and that includes in-built retail.

“So it means it might come with all those other amenities, which would be great.”

Mr Weimar said organisers needed to invest in significant infrastructure to support the games, including ferrying thousands of people between Melbourne and regional cities each day.

He said significant commercial developments were also needed in time for the games.

“We would like to see more hotel accommodation delivered, particularly in Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo,” he said.

Geelong’s Holiday Inn is expected to open with 180 rooms in early 2023. Picture: Alan Barber

Organisers expect 150,000 visitors in Geelong alone during competition and wants to hold people in the region as long as possible so they can enjoy not only the sport, but a cultural project and tourism opportunities.

There are some significant hotel projects in the pipeline in Geelong, including at the waterfront convention centre.

The 180-room Holiday Inn at Geelong Quarter on Ryrie St is expected to open in 2023, while the 87-apartment Quest Central Geelong hotel is also under construction on Gheringhap St.

Artist renders show the Cunningham Place development planned for central Geelong. It includes a 168-room hotel.

Early ground works have also been started for the 15-level Punthill Geelong apartment hotel, which will offer 80 studio apartments in Bellerine St.

Amber Property Group is awaiting on final approval from the Victorian planning Minister on a $250m mixed use development at 35 Corio St, which would feature a 168-room hotel.

Director Jevan Clay said the group wants to 20-storey project, Cunningham Place, completed in time for the games.

Originally published as Commonwealth Games athletes villages to deliver gold medal legacy for cheaper housing in Geelong, regional cities