Victoria Park Barrambin, which has been called the “green lungs” of our city, is under threat from budget cuts and a proposed mega-stadium. In 2016, Jonathan Sriranginathan, our first Greens Councillor, started calling for Victoria Park Golf Course to be converted back into parkland. Despite initial opposition, the LNP administration took up this Greens idea and have been running a Master Plan process. While the council budget, again, has removed all project details, it appears that there has been a major cut of at least around $40 million to the parks redevelopment budget. 

What this tells us is that the pre-election commitments the LNP made to big Green projects like the 5 new pedestrian/cycling bridges and to transforming Victoria Park/Barrambin are now under threat.  We are also seeing at least one bridge being cancelled. Another concern is that this massive budget reduction for Barrambin is to allow for a multi-billion dollar mega Olympic stadium to be dropped into this iconic greenspace.

I believe it is vital that we protect this park from the risk of both private and public development in years to come. Whether it be an Olympic stadium or large commercial operators, I am absolutely committed to fighting to protect this iconic greenspace that will be vital to Brisbane, as a sustainable city, as it continues to grow and develop. Our existing greenspaces are critical for guarding against the urban heat island effect and this is an opportunity to restore, enhance and create biodiversity close to our city centre. The park, over many years, has already been carved up from its original 130 hectares.  Barrambin has huge significance to First Nations people, as a site of cultural gatherings where dance, corroboree, hunting, fishing and ceremonies took place. 

To be clear, our Greens vision is and has always been to protect and re-wild the park. However, this would not require such large amounts of budget. Our focus is to minimise our carbon footprint, with less concrete structures or buildings, less commercialisation, and no Olympic venues, creating a place for our community to connect and dream. 

Instead of wasting billions on temporary venues and unnecessary stadiums, let's invest in upgrading our perfectly good existing stadiums and building better public transport for them. I am calling on every local, state and federal politician in Brisbane to rule out privatising or locking up any part of Victoria Park/Barrambin and get on with the job of delivering a Games Legacy for people, not big developers.

Apart from the legacy and importance of Barrambin itself, the proposal for a brand new Olympic stadium also does not hold up. The Graham Quirk review proposed a new stadium with 55,000 seats.  Our existing Lang Park (Suncorp) stadium can house up to the same number, so the only benefit of a new stadium is to run both athletics and opening/closing Olympic ceremonies. However Brisbane is not large enough for three large stadiums. Stadiums require many concerts and major sports teams to pay for their ongoing maintenance. Industry sources are clear that if a new stadium is built The Gabba would need to be demolished, due to a lack of regular commercial users.