Scrapped stadium could see bold new Albion Park development to future-proof harness racing

The scrapping of a Brisbane Olympics basketball venue could be the trigger for a battling sport to reinvent itself.

The Albion Park harness racing track. Picture: DroneIt Group

Queensland harness racing has a golden chance to reinvent its tired but treasured home at Albion Park after it was given the thumbs down as an Olympic venue.

A review by a panel led by former Lord Mayor Graham Quirk has found that the inner city pacing venue, initially commissioned to be an indoor venue for the 2032 Games with sports such as basketball and badminton, is unsuitable for several reasons.

They include poor proximity to transport, the huge cost of relocation for the trots, disruption to local residents, the loss of “mature’’ trees and the likelihood that nearby Brothers Leagues Club would have to be rebuilt.

It is not a formality the recommendation that Albion Park be scrapped as an Olympic venue will be endorsed by the State Government but Olympic sources expect that will be the case.

In the expectation it would have to move sites, harness racing purchased acreage at the flood-prone, mosquito-infested region of Norwell north of the Gold Coast but there is now no appetite from the industry to make that move.

Instead, Albion Park officials are likely to push for an exciting plan to future-proof Albion Park by building apartments on the vast tracts of open land at the track to bankroll the development of on-site stables and modernise the venue’s ancient grandstand.

Prominent harness racing owner Kevin Seymour. Picture: File

The state’s biggest owner, Kevin Seymour, has been pushing for this type of proposal for several years and may yet get his wish in what could be his most significant legacy for the industry.

There is a feeling that in forward-thinking Albion Park boss Ken Rutherford, a former New Zealand Test cricketer who has an experienced background in racing administration, the club has the right administrator for the right time.

It is likely when Quirk’s plan is announced on Monday Albion Park officials will swiftly offer their endorsement and start the push to stay where they are.

The sites undergoing further investigation as replacement Olympic venues include the Northside Wizards basketball facility at Zillmere and the Brisbane Entertainment Centre at Boondall.

Harness racing officials had been lobbying for the Boondall site to be redeveloped, feeling it was a more sensible option than uprooting their industry.

Originally published as Scrapped stadium could see bold new Albion Park development to future-proof harness racing