Toowoomba quarantine hub: Construction to ramp up with 500 beds to be built by Christmas

With 500 beds of the Wellcamp Airport quarantine facility to be built by Christmas, construction work is expected to ramp up. Here’s how many jobs the project will create.

What is now a green field near Wellcamp Airport will be a 500-bed quarantine hub by Christmas, with construction work at the site ramping up from next week.

On Thursday morning Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced yesterday the government had struck a deal with the owners of Wellcamp Airport John Wagner and the Wagner family to built a 1000-bed purpose-built quarantine facility.

As part of the agreement, the construction will be completed by Wagner Corporation, with the State Government to operate the facility once it is up and running.

26/08/2021: Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk at the site of a quarantine hub that will be built at Wellcamp Airport in Toowoomba. She was accompanied by Wellcamp owners John Wagner and Joe Wagner. PIC: Jack Tran

Mr Wagner said after months of negotiations he was pleased to finally be given the green light to start building by the Queensland government.

“It’s a great thing for Toowoomba and for our region, not to mention the state and the country,” he said.

Mr Wagner said during the construction phase there would be up to 400 jobs created, while up to 150 jobs would be supported during the operation of the facility.

“There’ll be up to 3000 meals a day that will provide opportunities for our local producers, jobs for laundry people, cleaners, transport people, bus companies and drivers, should I go on?”

ALL SMILES: Wagner Corporation chairman John Wagner at the announcement a quarantine hub would be built at Wellcamp Airport, owned by the Wagners.

Mr Wagner said construction subcontractors were currently gearing up to begin work within the next week, and for people to “keep an eye on Seek” for job opportunities.

“We’ve got to have 500 rooms up by Christmas so we’ll be cracking on,” he said.

With the final design of the facility nearing completion, Mr Wagner said topsoil was currently being stripped from the site, and once the electrical, plumbing and stormwater designs had been complete they would start “serious construction”.

Ms Palaszczuk said the State Government would have a 12-month lease on the facility, with an option to extend the lease for another two years, however would not confirm the long-term future of the facility.

Mr Wagner confirmed that once the lease ended with the government, the facility would be dismantled.

“We are just the landlord to the government, we’re not operating the facility,” he said.

“They asked us to build a purpose-built facility and we’ll be charging monthly rent, the Queensland Government is just like Qantas or anyone else at Wellcamp.

“The benefits to Toowoomba will be significant and it’s very clear this facility is something that’s needed.”