Games sites won’t sit idle
THE Gold Coast does not have to fear inheriting “white elephants” with its Games sporting facilities attracting strong future bookings for national and international competitions.
QE11 Stadium, the spiritual home of the Brisbane 1982 Commonwealth Games, has mostly sat idle since the Brisbane Broncos left for Suncorp Stadium in 2003.
But the Coast venues will not suffer the same fate.
The Gold Coast City Council says it is poised to make a “major sporting event announcement next week” on the back of both solid preGames and post-Games interest in the Coast venues.
More than 129 events were hosted by the Gold Coast Aquatic Centre, the Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre at Carrara and the Coomera Indoor Sports Centre in the Games lead-up.
Acting Gold Coast Mayor Donna Gates said the venues had secured more than 100 event and function bookings in 2018, 32 of which were national or international level.
“The city has already taken major event bookings out to 2019 with 420 events and functions projected to be hosted in the new and refurbished city-managed GC2018 venues in 2018-19,” she said.
“In addition, the city has also successfully leveraged the new and refurbished GC2018 venues to attract international elite training camps, hosting 35 such camps since opening.
“The new GC2018 venues have exceeded early expectations and planned usage – booking hours are projected to double from 25,779 in 2017-18 to 51,561 in 2018-19.”
Asked about the usage of the venues, Cr Gates replied: “Yes, it will be a mix of local and visiting sports people and these facilities will cement the Gold Coast as the premier sporting capital of Australia.”
Major Events Minister Kate Jones said the Government was committed to working with council to make sure the venues continue to host big events and benefit locals.
“This week I’ve been negotiating with some of the world’s leading sports administrators about what we have to offer to leverage the Games to bring more sporting events to the Coast.
“Tourism and Events Queensland are also working on a long-term strategy with council to make sure taxpayers and ratepayers get the best bang for their buck when it comes to hosting events at these venues.”
I’VE BEEN NEGOTIATING WITH SOME OF THE WORLD’S LEADING SPORTS ADMINISTRATORS ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE TO OFFER TO LEVERAGE THE GAMES TO BRING MORE SPORTING EVENTS TO THE COAST. MAJOR EVENTS MINISTER KATE JONES