One of the sites proposed for the new Entertainment Centre, the Parmalat site in South Brisbane
Phil Heywood of the Kurilpa Futures Group questions the planning behind the planned establishment of a new, 15,000 seat Entertainment Centre in Brisbane.
Kurilpa Futures acknowledges that this is an interesting idea and sympathises with the generally positive response which it has attracted from all sides of politics. We recognise that the proposed 15,000 seat Entertainment Centre could be physically accommodated on each of the Parmalat, Go Print and Brisbane Exhibition Grounds sites.
We submit that the following considerations should receive attention in reaching decisions on this matter:
- Adjacency and direct access to public transport of busways & rail stations, available at both the “Go Print” and Exhibition grounds sites
- Good neighbour issues of sound generation and periodic arrivals of large numbers of patrons throughout the evening and often continuing till late at night suggest that the proposed Centre should be distanced from proposed residential uses.
- Problems of “border vacuums” and aesthetic blight of a necessarily large blank-walled structure will need careful management and highlight the need for harmonious relations with adjacent uses, favouring location close to the Gabba Cricket and Football Ground and the Exhibition Grounds
- Shared use with existing activities to promote the maximum mix and intensity suggests that feasibility studies be conducted concerning co-location with the Exhibition Ground and The Gabba Cricket/ Football Ground
- Each of these considerations should feed into a cost benefit study which should include community input before any recommendation is reached concerning this proposal.
- Existing Neighborhood Plan and Master Plan proposals for each of the sites should be consulted to ensure that the proposed stadium is consistent with their current intentions and zoning
- The need for such a large and public structure to achieve the highest possible architectural standards -including sensitivity to its adjacent activities and land uses – indicates the advantages of an ultimate design competition guided by contextually sensitive requirements.
These issues all require to be addressed with extensive public & professional consultation before a decision is taken. The run up to a Council election is no time to make firm commitments to a specific proposal, which requires such careful evaluation and consideration of impacts and alternatives.
In summary the Kurilpa Futures urges immediate commencement of the foregoing processes of deliberative consultation, and guarantees its willingness to participate in such a program.
