Council told entertainment centre for 18,000 fans will take up width of Carey Park

Former councillor Dawn Crichlow has erupted over plans for a giant indoor stadium at Southport, which residents say is too big for its proposed parkland site. Read what she said.

Former councillor Dawn Crichlow has launched a blistering attack on plans for an indoor arena at Southport, saying she had “never been more offended with any project”.

The proposed 12,000 Gold Coast Arena at Carey Park, to be fully funded by council, was included in the Crisafulli government’s road map for the 2032 Olympics.

Mayor Tate has since told councillors he wants the City to explore a larger stadium with a capacity for up to 18,000 fans – something opponents say would be too big for the Carey Park site.

Mr Tate and his councillors have received a lengthy report from the Save Carey Park group listing specific concerns about traffic, parking and environmental issues along with the size of the Gold Coast Arena footprint.

The City has responded by saying the size of the arena has not been decided.

The Save Carey Park submission was put together by an engineering industry executive after examining the City’s previous confidential report on arena sites.

The group’s committee met last week with Ms Crichlow joining veteran environmental advocate Lois Levy, Coast Greens leader Sally Spain, heritage architect Arnold Wolthers and Federation Walk founder Lyn Wright.

“I have never been more offended with any project since I was first elected to the City Council in 1991,” Ms Crichlow said.

Former Southport councillor Dawn Crichlow. Picture: Jerad Williams.

“A 12-story enclosed stadium will dwarf the town centre skyline and require destruction of the heritage listed trees that provide valuable shade as well as the outstanding environmental amenity of a longstanding local fringe park.”

In its submission, the Save Carey Park group said: “The stadium stands to be 33 metres in height which equates to approximately twelve stories in height.

“The width of the oval shaped stadium means that the structure will span the entire width, from kerb to kerb, of Carey Park and may according to one architect need to have an angled cantilevered styled wall extending over Marine Parade.

Image showing the planned Gold Coast Arena at Carey Park in Southport.

“The immensity of the stadium cannot be underestimated. It will be taller than the office section of Australia Fair and slightly lower than the height of Huntington Apartments on Marine Parade.”

The group warned the arena, which was included in the may not comply with building codes “if circulation cannot be achieved around the structure within Carey Park”.

“The immense mass of the stadium will dominate the skyline whilst overpowering the proportions of a small fringe park that has long served as an environmental and cultural heritage buffer between the exceedingly traffic-congested Gold Coast Highway and the town centre,” the group said.

Image from a Gold Coast City Council report showing the site coverage for the planned Gold Coast Arena at Carey Park.

A City spokesperson said: “The images released of the proposed Gold Coast Arena are artists impressions only. The size and scale of the proposed Arena project will not be determined until the completion of detailed design by Invest Gold Coast. Any proposal (including detailed designs) will be subject to council approval.”

Mayor Tate told councillors he wanted the City to explore a larger stadium to prevent the added costs of later expanding the venue as the Gold Coast increases its population.

The City’s report, which considered several sites, maintains Carey Park was the preferred location “from an operator, community and functional perspective”.

The site had good access to various transport options including light rail, ferry and buses, and was close to the arterial road network along with accommodation and retail outlets.

Graphics showing “massing plans” and a block plan for the entire park clearly detail how the stadium could reach edges near the Gold Coast Highway and Marine Parade.

Artist impression of the proposed Gold Coast Arena at Carey Park, Southport. Picture: Supplied by Gold Coast City Council

City officers said the site had some weaknesses around roads including “severance and safety from major arterial at the end of the site”.

Other challenges included potential future flooding events, the archaeological merit of a sea wall on the site and the native claim process.

The big pluses included being close to the Broadwater Parklands, high quality pedestrian links to Southport CBD, the amount of nearby council parking and no demolition works.

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Originally published as Council told entertainment centre for 18,000 fans will take up width of Carey Park