Birkdale White water plans on Council meeting agenda

Post 2032 concept plan of the Council’s plans for a white water facility at Birkdale

Birkdale white water plan questioned

Redland City Council’s plans for building a white water sports and recreation facility at Birkdale will be discussed at Redland City Council’s monthly meeting on Wednesday.

Three agenda items relate to the Council’s plans for a white water facility at Birkdale:

• 14.1 Council of mayors North America mission
• 14.2 Final Birkdale Community Precinct master plan
• 14.3 Local government infrastructure designation consultation for the Birkdale Precinct master plan

Mayor Williams in North America

The agenda includes a long but uninformative document about Mayor Karen Williams’ recent overseas trip to North America. This document does not include any details of how much this trip cost ratepayers, directly or indirectly.

Some of the overseas trip costs were funded through an entity called the Council of Mayors (SEQ) which is a company owned and funded by Redland City Council and various other south east Queensland local councils.

Redlands2030 was recently advised by Redland City Council (RCC) that it has paid the following funds to Council of Mayors (SEQ), with 2022/23 figures yet to be finalised:

	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23
RCC Membership levies	$81,368	$80,880	$82,155	$83,316
RCC Project contributions	$54,447	$54,447	$50,000	$123,515
Total RCC contributions	$135,815	$135,327	$132,155	$206,831

White water questions

Redlands2030 has some questions for Redland City Council which should be answered before any decisions are made regarding the proposed Birkdale white water facility:

• Why won’t Redland City Council consult with the community to find out if there is popular support for building a white water facility at Birkdale?
• The Council says: “Financial due diligence modelling, market sounding and demand modelling has been undertaken for the resilience training and whitewater centres, and premium precinct elements and activities”. Could you please make this modelling publicly available, before the Council meeting on Wednesday?
• Is it true that the annual operating cost of a public swimming lagoon such as that proposed for Birkdale is at least $2 million per year?
• How much electrical energy will be needed for the proposed white water facility and what planning is being done to ensure that this energy is “climate positive”?
• How much money would Federal and State taxpayers save if the canoe slalom for the 2032 Olympics is held at the existing facility in Penrith, NSW?
• How much has Redland City Council spent to date on its planning for the proposed Redland Whitewater Centre and the other elements of the Birkdale Precinct?
• What is the status of the 2019 Conservation Agreement between Redland City Council and the Commonwealth Government that is intended to protect the conservation values and Matters of National Environmental Significance (MNES) on the lands of the Birkdale Community Precinct, especially the Endangered Koala? Has the Conservation Agreement even been signed by both parties? Will the intent and integrity of the Conservation Agreement be compromised by the proposed white water facility?
• The International Olympic Committee’s ‘New Norm’ policy tells us not to build new facilities, and instead use existing ones – because white elephant Olympic facilities are crushing Host Cities worldwide. The only exception is if a new facility is much-needed, long-planned, already on its way, and has a strong business case. Evidence shows the proposed $100 million Redlands Whitewater Stadium is none of these, yet Redland City Council apparently told the Brisbane 2032 Bid Team that it is. In turn, the Bid Team told the International Olympic Committee (in a document called the ‘IOC Future Host Commission Questionnaire Response Final Submission – May 2021’) that the Redlands Whitewater Stadium is much-needed and has a strong business plan. Where is the evidence to support this? Has Redland City Council misrepresented the circumstances here in the Redlands, and if so, why?
• Of the last six Whitewater Stadiums built for the Olympic Games, three (Athens, Beijing and Rio de Janeiro) are abandoned and three (London, Tokyo and the Sydney 2000 Stadium in Penrith, NSW) are running at a loss. By what miracle does Redland City Council propose that a Whitewater Stadium in Birkdale would turn a profit when these stadiums, in major cities across the world, cannot?
• Is Redland City Council aware that the 2032 Brisbane Olympics bid document called the ‘IOC Future Host Commission Questionnaire Response Final Submission – May 2021’ states that the costs of operating the Whitewater Stadium will be the sole responsibility of Redland City Council – from the moment the capital build is completed and the Whitewater Stadium becomes operational in mid-2026? What will these costs be? What will be the impact on our rates? Why haven’t we been told? Does Council even know?

Confidential items

There are four confidential items listed for discussion on Wednesday:

• 20.1 Sale of Land for Overdue Rates and Charge
• 20.2 Judicial Review of a Council Decision
• 20.3 Redland Investment Corporation Financial Report for Period Ending 30 September 2022 and Redland Investment Corporation Business Plan and Budget 2022-2023
• 20.4 Approval of Budget Request for Landslip Remediation Project

Heinemann Road costs

Cr Wendy Boglary wants increases in costs for the Council’s $200 million Heinemann Road sports and recreation project to be explained in a public report to Council.

Here is her notice of motion:

About Redland City Council meetings

People can attend and observe Redland City Council meetings but very few seats are available in the Council chambers. So get there early if you want to see the live action.

Latecomers get to watch proceedings on a TV screen in another room.

Redland City Council meetings are now live streamed on YouTube.

Several days after the meeting the minutes will be published. We can’t understand why it takes so long. Minutes used to be available within 48 hours.

The agenda for this meeting, including officers’ reports for non-confidential items, is available on the Council website.

Redlands2030 – 13 March 2023