The first official render of the National Aquatic Centre has been released by the Queensland government.
ARM Architecture and NH Architecture, in partnership with Queensland’s Arkhefield, will help deliver the Spring Hill centre on the edge of Victoria Park.
As this masthead revealed two weeks ago, the Centenary Pool Complex will be handed over to the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority by Brisbane City Council on September 1.
The new development will be “an iconic swimming and water sports centre that will host the world’s best aquatic athletes in 2032 and be a world-class facility and high-performance hub for Australia’s future super fish”, a state government spokesperson said.
The construction timeline for the National Aquatic Centre has not been confirmed, but August 30 will be the existing pool’s last day of operation.
Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie would not confirm on Wednesday whether the venue’s capacity would be downgraded from the planned 25,000 to save money, after Australian Financial Review reporting this week that ARM had been asked to scale back the centre to manage costs.
“GIICA [is] required to go through all that at the moment and the budget [for all Games venues] is $7.1 billion, and they’re required to deliver those projects within budget,” Bleijie said.
“Capacity has been detailed in the delivery plan, but … we are going through a process with GIICA at the moment for all the venues, and we did ask them to look at the costings.
“When you appoint architects and designers, they have to do it within budget, and we’ve been abundantly clear on that.”
The render does not include how the heritage-listed elements of the site will be handled, and Premier David Crisafulli has previously refused to address whether the current complex will be demolished.
Bleijie confirmed on Wednesday that affected tenants would be compensated, but said when and how much was a matter for Brisbane City Council.
Tenants at the site have still not received official confirmation of their eviction date, and have not been informed about compensation.
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