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Back in early January, we reported that Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate wants his city to host Olympic swimming in 2032.
And his bid to wrest the marquee events from Brisbane has the backing of Australia’s richest person – billionaire Gina Rinehart.
But Brisbane’s Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner says he will fight to keep the swimming events in the Queensland capital, fearing any change will allow the state and federal governments to walk away from plans to build the proposed $2.5 billion Brisbane Arena, which has been slated for the north-west corner of the Roma Street Parklands.
The revised plan for the Brisbane Arena saw the indoor stadium moved to the northern end of Roma Street Parklands.Credit: Queensland government
“Well, look, every mayor is going to advocate for their communities, and that’s their job, and I’m doing that for my community,” Schrinner told ABC Radio this morning.
“We saw, over the last couple of days, [rapper] Drake was playing at the Boondall Entertainment Centre … and people were literally stuck there for hours in the car park waiting to get in, and there was nothing for them to do before or after.
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“Is this the legacy that we want in 20 years’ time, to keep going to Boondall? The federal government’s already agreed to pay for this thing. That was locked in years ago.”
Under the current proposal, Brisbane Arena will be built for the Games with a temporary drop-in pool and seating for 17,000 spectators.
“And then after that, the pool will be taken out and it will become a permanent concert venue, and it’ll be available for sporting events and also concerts,” Schrinner said.
“We can’t afford [for] that legacy to be lost because it is a good legacy on an ongoing basis that will generate jobs and economic opportunity, and a facility for people to use, not just for Brisbane residents, but for south-east Queensland residents.”
Concept designs for Brisbane Live, the precursor to Brisbane Arena, released by the state government in 2019. It is depicted at its original site.Credit: Queensland government
How much weight the lord mayor’s words carry will be revealed when the final recommendations of the LNP government’s 100-day Brisbane 2032 Olympic infrastructure review are unveiled at a business lunch on March 25.
