A frustrating wait over the Gabba’s future has prompted a joint plea for a new 2032 Olympic stadium from tenants Queensland Cricket and AFL club Brisbane Lions.
A letter has been sent by the sporting bodies to Premier David Crisafulli urging him to reconsider his new stadium ban, backing a proposed AU$3.4 billion Victoria Park venue as the Brisbane Games centrepiece.
They now want to meet with the premier to discuss the Gabba’s future, seeking assurances over a venue plan to ensure both sports will survive and “doesn’t send us broke”.
Mr Crisafulli threw out Labor’s Olympic venue plan after winning the October 26 election, with an independent body set to launch a 100-day review and provide a new 2032 blueprint.
However the Liberal National Party leader has repeatedly ruled out building a new Olympic stadium.
Queensland Cricket and the Brisbane Lions are unfazed, saying they hope “common sense will prevail” when they speak with the premier after enduring an anxious wait over the Gabba’s future.
“We’re hoping to meet with the new premier and his team over the next couple of weeks,” Queensland Cricket CEO Terry Svenson told reporters on Friday.
“[It is] just really to talk about what our expectations are but I guess more the frustrations that we have had over the last 18 months.”
The Gabba was initially set to be knocked down and rebuilt for AU$2.7 billion under the Labor government for the 2032 Games before that was scrapped amid a backlash over rising costs.
It was then set for a $600 million Olympic facelift under Labor before plans went back to square one under the new LNP government.
Mr Svenson said “everything is on the table” for their government talks but backed the proposed 55,000-capacity Victoria Park stadium pitch.
An independent Olympic venue review earlier this year claimed the Gabba would reach the end of its life in 2030 and was in “poor condition”.
Uncertainty over the ageing facility’s future has ensured the Gabba is scrambling to host prestige international cricket matches as Australia’s No. 5 ranked Test venue.
Mr Svenson said Queensland Cricket and the Lions wanted a decision on the Gabba’s fate sooner rather than later so they could plan for the future.
Both sporting codes would need to find another home venue if the Gabba is revamped or replaced, with Queensland Cricket alone facing up to AU$40 million in displacement costs.
“If displacement is back on the table we actually need to have that conversation with the government,” Mr Svenson said. “If this place gets knocked down and rebuilt where do the Lions play, where does Australian cricket play? It’s important for us to have certainty that it doesn’t send us broke.”
Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie on Friday said he had not seen the letter but was “happy to look into it”.
However, he backed its 100-day review, sticking with the government’s “no new stadium” mantra.
