The Queensland Premier has revealed updated plans for Brisbane’s 2032 Athletes Village, confirming that construction contractor BMD will begin work on the Hamilton Northshore site next month. It comes after Wood Central last year revealed that the state government will use mass timber as its preferred construction material for the village:
“We can see timber as a building material has great potential in achieving the government’s commitment to a climate-positive Games,” according to then-Assistant Minister to Premier Bart Mellish. “Using timber for the athletes’ village could achieve a dual legacy as a sustainable venue and as lasting affordable accommodation.”
According to Premier Steven Miles, the Athletes Village will form part of Brisbane’s largest waterfront renewal project. Spread across more than 300 hectares, it will feature a mix of retail, residential, and commercial properties and, in 2032, also host 10,000 athletes from across the world.
As part of the new $87m “street renewal” package, BMD will build several new roads, upgrade existing paths and add a “subtropical boulevard” extending along Macarthur Avenue: “Our city has so much opportunity – an opportunity that we can capitalise on now,” Premier Miles said. “These early works will transform Northshore Brisbane now, well ahead of 2032, and deliver a better, more connected Brisbane.”
“After the Games, this area will be repurposed into much-needed housing, including social and affordable homes.”
However, the village keys will not be handed to the homeless before the games after the Miles government backed-stepped on a commitment to accelerate construction to address Brisbane’s housing crisis: “We are currently not planning to use the constructed dwellings for temporary accommodation to then transfer into Games mode to then transfer into the permanent mode,” Economic Development Queensland general manager Debbie McNamara told a hearing last week.
Brisbane’s Village to be inspired by Paris 2024 and Milan 2026
According to Bart Mallish, now Minister for Transport and Main Roads, the Queensland Government’s decision to use lightweight construction materials, like mass timber, “is inspired by the impressive timber stories emerging from the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris and also the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo.”
Wood Central understands that more than 45% of the €2B games village in Paris was built out of timber, delivered on time and to budget, whilst work is continuing on Milan’s “self-sustaining neighbourhood, with the timber village 12 months away from opening ahead of the 2026 games.
Brisbane, like Paris, Milan, and Los Angeles, is obligated to deliver more than AU $7 billion worth of “cleaner, greener and more sustainable” infrastructure that aligns with the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) “New Norms.” The “New Norms” include more than 100 measures to make the Games more affordable, beneficial, and sustainable – including more sustainable building materials, like mass timber, green steel, and recycled concrete, and, where feasible, upcycling venues.
In May, Wood Central reported that Toby Hodsdon, an Associate Principal at Arup, said new norms create opportunities to build Brisbane’s venues out of timber. In a recent presentation, Mr Hodsdon said that timber-led venues not only help organisers meet sustainability targets but are also lightweight – and therefore assist with future alteration, increase the speed of construction, and manage supply risk.
To learn more about the Brisbane Olympic Games and the status of the AU $1.87 billion Minor Venues Programme, which is now out to tender, visit Wood Central’s special feature.