History
Victoria Park was traditionally a meeting and gathering place for Indigenous groups travelling through the area. The park over the years had hosted a migrant workers' camp, a shanty town and a medical precinct. [2] [3] The park was named Victoria Park in 1875. [4]
During the years of World War II, the site was partially occupied by the forces of the United States, and had many military designated buildings constructed. After the war and until the late 70s the buildings were used as temporary accommodation. [4] The site had been long neglected for future development, as factors such as swampy grounds, unexploded ammunition from World War II, and previously used rubbish dumping grounds have posed safety risks and budget blow outs for projects on the site. [5]
Part of the park was converted into a golf course in 1931, but Brisbane City Council developed plans in 2020 to convert the 64 hectare site back into a park. [6] [7] In 2021, when Brisbane won the bid to host the 2032 Summer Olympics, [8] the park was originally planned to host Freestyle BMX and the cross country element of the equestrian event. [9] It was also intended for The Gabba to serve as the main stadium with a $1 billion reconstruction of the stadium. [10] By 2023, the projected cost was $2.7 billion, which would be paid entirely by the state. [11] Parallel plans for a 20,000-seat stadium at the Brisbane Showgrounds at a cost of $137 million to be used a temporary venue for the Gabba's tenants during construction were also announced. [12]
In March 2024, following an independent review led by former Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, [13] the rebuild project was cancelled, with the Gabba instead slated to undergo a refurbishment ahead of its role in the games. With Lang Park and the Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre hosing the ceremonies and athletics . [14] However a new stadium at Victoria Park was recommended by Quirk before being dismissed by the government. [15] [6]
Following a change of government in the 2024 election another review into infrastructure for the Olympic Games was conducted. [16] The design firm Arcadis presented a proposal for the Victoria Park stadium, the relocation of the Brisbane Live arena to Victoria Park, and the construction of an aquatic centre on the site of the Centenary Pool Complex. The overall project was budgeted at A$5.4 billion, which the firm argued, was A$200 million cheaper than the combined costs of building Brisbane Live in its current state, and renovating The Gabba, Lang Park and Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre. [17] [18] The idea of a stadium at Victoria Park was backed by the President of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee, Andrew Liveris. [19]
A A$3.8 billion, 63,000-seat stadium was announced for Victoria Park in March 2025, to serve as the Olympics main stadium, before taking over the Gabba's role as Brisbane's main football and cricket venue. [20] This was despite David Crisafulli campaigning during the 2024 elections that a new stadium to host the athletics and specifically one in Victoria Park would not happen; the Queensland Government followed recommendations from the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority. [6] With Queensland premier Crisafulli noting that the Gabba had not been maintained very well and that it had become a choice between spending billions on temporary facilities with no legacy or securing a long term future of Australian Rules and Cricket in Brisbane. [21]
Reaction
David Crisafulli apologised for breaking his election promise of not building a new stadium for athletics and specifically constructing one at Victoria Park. [20] [6] When he was opposition leader Crisafulli had stated that Queenslanders felt "embarrassed" by the earlier decision to host Olympic events at the Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC) instead of the Gabba. [22] Many people also felt that Brisbane might present as a second-rate city getting ready to host a second-rate games. [23] Arcadis in their proposal for the stadium emphasised that discussions have mainly centred around the "cost" of the games, rather than the long-term "value" for the city. [18] [24] Many had criticised the Queensland Governments for choosing "embarrassing" and "cheapskate" approaches, over a new fit-for-purpose Olympic showpiece in Victoria Park. [19]
The March 2025 proposal to construct the stadium within Victoria Park saw long-standing political group, Save Victoria Park, advocating to keep the site as parkland since early 2020. The group has taken to the media in recent times to state that they have briefed lawyers in a potential court challenge against the proposal of the new stadium, as they believe it will remove the limited green space with such proximity to the central business district. [25] Designer, Michael Rayner, stated that the chosen outcome was similar to a proposal that he mentioned during a lecture in 2019. Rayner noted that a cluster of major venues which would be "as great a hallmark of Brisbane as Melbourne Park is to Melbourne." Rayner in his proposal thought that the land required for the stadium, Brisbane Live and the pool in the park would less than a third of Victoria Park, leaving some 30 hectares or so for the public, about twice the area of Sydney’s Hyde Park. But since Brisbane Live will be constructed somewhere else Rayner thought that the stadium and pool would only take up around 20% of the 64-hectare park. [26] [27]
The site of the stadium holds cultural significance to the Turrbal people. The park was a native camping ground and food-gathering place and hosted the corroboree, which is the traditional dance for First Nations people. [28] Historian Ray Kerkhove who had conducted multiple heritages assessments the park, for different levels of government, stated that the site is probably the most significant site of Indigenous heritage in central Brisbane and that it would be destroyed by the stadium. [6]
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