Latest news with #GamesIndependentInfrastructureandCoordinationAuthority
Sydney Morning Herald
6 days ago
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
New infrastructure boss keen to get digging at Victoria Park
Construction of Brisbane's new Olympic stadium could begin earlier than first thought, with the man tasked with delivering Games infrastructure keen to get excavators into Victoria Park sooner rather than later. Simon Crooks, who previously headed the Queen's Wharf construction for Destination Brisbane, was announced as the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority's new chief executive on Wednesday, with a starting date of August 1. And the former project manager was keen to get shovels in the ground as soon as possible. Crooks said work could start on the Olympic stadium in Victoria Park well before procurement, to accelerate the process once the stadium's location was determined. Loading 'There's about a 300,000 cubic metre mass fill – that can be done early and done quickly,' he said. 'That allows the time procurement for the main stadium, and if there are things that need to be adjusted, you'll get that done in the detailed excavation.' Crooks would not put a firm date on when the works would begin. 'I will know once I've got in the seat and had a look at it – but my view is, you try and procure all of these things early and get those risks out of it,' he said.
The Age
6 days ago
- Business
- The Age
New infrastructure boss keen to get digging at Victoria Park
Construction of Brisbane's new Olympic stadium could begin earlier than first thought, with the man tasked with delivering Games infrastructure keen to get excavators into Victoria Park sooner rather than later. Simon Crooks, who previously headed the Queen's Wharf construction for Destination Brisbane, was announced as the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority's new chief executive on Wednesday, with a starting date of August 1. And the former project manager was keen to get shovels in the ground as soon as possible. Crooks said work could start on the Olympic stadium in Victoria Park well before procurement, to accelerate the process once the stadium's location was determined. Loading 'There's about a 300,000 cubic metre mass fill – that can be done early and done quickly,' he said. 'That allows the time procurement for the main stadium, and if there are things that need to be adjusted, you'll get that done in the detailed excavation.' Crooks would not put a firm date on when the works would begin. 'I will know once I've got in the seat and had a look at it – but my view is, you try and procure all of these things early and get those risks out of it,' he said.
Sydney Morning Herald
6 days ago
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Review set to start on Rockhampton Olympic rowing venue
A technical review of the Fitzroy River Olympic rowing venue is about to begin, Premier David Crisafulli announced as he visited the planned Rockhampton venue to mark seven years to the day until the start of the Brisbane 2032 Games. Crisafulli said the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority would conduct the review, which would start immediately. But, ultimately, World Rowing would decide whether the Fitzroy was an appropriate venue for Olympic competition. Professor David Hamilton, the director of Griffith University's Australian Rivers Institute, said the Fitzroy posed legitimate concerns for competition integrity. The former rower said the sport was 'very sensitive' to currents. Loading 'If you're going to do something like that, you'd want to do the computer modelling of it to make sure that it wasn't going to necessarily prejudice certain lanes in the rowing field,' Hamilton said. 'It's got to be really carefully evaluated, because the last thing the Games would want is something that brought into jeopardy the ability to have an even playing field.' Asked on Wednesday what would happen if the sport's governing body determined Rockhampton was not suitable for international competition, Crisafulli was adamant.
The Age
6 days ago
- Sport
- The Age
Review set to start on Rockhampton Olympic rowing venue
A technical review of the Fitzroy River Olympic rowing venue is about to begin, Premier David Crisafulli announced as he visited the planned Rockhampton venue to mark seven years to the day until the start of the Brisbane 2032 Games. Crisafulli said the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority would conduct the review, which would start immediately. But, ultimately, World Rowing would decide whether the Fitzroy was an appropriate venue for Olympic competition. Professor David Hamilton, the director of Griffith University's Australian Rivers Institute, said the Fitzroy posed legitimate concerns for competition integrity. The former rower said the sport was 'very sensitive' to currents. Loading 'If you're going to do something like that, you'd want to do the computer modelling of it to make sure that it wasn't going to necessarily prejudice certain lanes in the rowing field,' Hamilton said. 'It's got to be really carefully evaluated, because the last thing the Games would want is something that brought into jeopardy the ability to have an even playing field.' Asked on Wednesday what would happen if the sport's governing body determined Rockhampton was not suitable for international competition, Crisafulli was adamant.
The Age
13-05-2025
- Sport
- The Age
Heritage protection recommended for Victoria Park, but stadium to go ahead
A Queensland government department has recommended all of Victoria Park be heritage listed, despite the government's plans to build the main stadium for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games on the site. In a document dated April 2025, Environment Department heritage director Xanthe O'Donnell recommended the existing heritage listing, between Gilchrist Avenue and Gregory Terrace, be expanded to the rest of the park. The recommendation came shortly after Premier David Crisafulli announced the inner-city park would be the site of a new 63,000-seat oval stadium, on the advice of the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority. Post-Games, it would revert to Brisbane's home of cricket and the Brisbane Lions AFL team. 'Victoria Park, a place that has been formed by a range of uses over time, is important in demonstrating the establishment and evolution of Queensland's early public recreation reserves,' O'Donnell writes in the recommendation. 'The park retains physical evidence of its varied and evolving uses – some have left visible legacies in built and landscape form, while others have contributed to the archaeological potential of the site.' Save Victoria Park spokeswoman Rosemary O'Hagan said the recommendation was a vindication for the anti-stadium community group. 'It just highlights how important the park is,' she said.
