New cash worth $91 makes Barlow Park upgrade dream a reality
An additional $44m will be pumped into a major upgrade of Barlow Park in a push to get the venue Games ready and attract increased major events to the region.
Cairns
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An additional $44m will be pumped into a major upgrade of Barlow Park in a push to get the venue Games ready and attract increased major events to the region.
Previously announced funding of $44m has now been boosted to a total of $91m through a joint state and federal funding arrangement allocated under the $1.87bn Minor Venues Program.
State Development and Infrastructure Minister Grace Grace will announce additional funding and the procurement process in Cairns on Tuesday.
The upgrade will see the current 1700-seat West Stand rebuilt and its capacity more
than doubled to 3500 permanent seats, with an additional 1500 retractable seats for
use over the existing athletics track.
Minister Grace said the venue would be able to host 2032 Olympic Games football preliminaries and the addition of around 15,000 temporary seats would bring total capacity of the stadium to 20,000.
“The upgrade will pump $91m into the local economy and brings the total now out
to procurement for our minor Games venues to almost $1bn,” she said.
“We’re still eight years out from the Games and we’re already getting ready to deliver
sports facilities that will be in community use well before 2032.”
The tender process for the managing contractor will soon kick off and appointment of the successful contractor to oversee the design, procurement and construction of the project is expected in late 2024.
Construction is expected to begin in late 2025 and finish in 2028.
Federal Infrastructure and Regional Development Minister Catherine King said the upgrades would transform Barlow Park into a world-class stadium.
“Over $850m in procurement for seven Games venue projects has now been announced, with eight years to go until the Games, that represents significant progress,” she said.
Huge lights are in the process of being installed by i-LEC Group after $7m was approved for improved lighting in August last year alongside a $1.3m video replay screen.
Whether Barlow Park was the best fit for major sporting infrastructure investment has been a historically divisive topic due to debate suitability of the playing field being surrounded by an athletics track.
But under the latest vision for the park the Cairns Athletics Club will be able to remain at the ground with the athletics track retained.
The multimillion dollar upgrade had the backing of Tourism Minister Michael Healy who said Far North children would get every opportunity to grow and develop into world-class champions.
“This is a fantastic development that will deliver a strong legacy outcome, leveraging existing venues and providing capacity for a growing city,” he said.
Cairns Mayor Amy Eden was encouraged by increased female change rooms which she said helped position the Cairns region as a leading destination for women’s sport.
The late Kevin Byrne advocated for construction of a rectangular stadium for years in a belief Cairns deserved a venue to attract top-tier sporting events and though the new facility falls short of 25,000 seat Queensland Country Bank Stadium in Townsville, for the first time the upgrade is now fully funded.
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Originally published as New cash worth $91 makes Barlow Park upgrade dream a reality
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