Previously, we described how Redland City Council bought land at Heinemann Road in Mount Cotton, expecting to get 46 hectares for sports fields: Part 1: Redlands sports and recreation precinct — Land Purchase
Master planning: 2017-2020
It took about three years for the Council to adopt a master plan for the Redlands sports and recreation precinct.
Initial investigations included a detailed survey and hydrology study of the site according to the Council’s 2017/18 Annual Report.
Planning work began in late 2018, assisted with a State Government grant of $100,000 to develop a ‘Sport and Recreation Precinct Master Plan’.
State Sports Minister Mick de Brenni attended an on-site photo opportunity on 29 November 2018 with Mayor Karen Williams, six local councillors, and Kim Richards the MP for Redlands.
With this grant money, Ross Planning was engaged to prepare a master plan for the Heinemann Road property. As well as getting advice from various sub-consultants, Ross Planning had access to an ecological assessment of the site, done for the Council by Cardno, in mid 2019.
A draft master plan was put out for community consultation by the Council in January- February 2020. Officers wanted to get this done before the local government elections caretaker period began in late February 2020.
The final version of Ross Planning’s report and master plan was approved at a Council meeting on 13 May 2020. There were a couple of new faces at the table following the elections held on 28 March 2020. Councillors were now sitting 1.5 metres apart from each other to comply with COVID-19 social distancing rules. These social distancing rules gave many people increased appreciation of being able to get outdoors and enjoy time in local parks.
The Heinemann Road master plan catered for three sports. There would be 14 touch foottball fields, replacing the existing use of land at the Cleveland Showgrounds. Three new Rugby League fields would be provided, freeing up space in the congested Pinklands precinct so other sports could expand.
New cycling facilities would include a BMX track (freeing up land at Deegen Road in Capalaba) together with a criterium circuit – both located in the well-treed north west part of the Heinemann Road site.
The master plan also included car parks, boardwalks, unsealed trails and a regional-level play area including picnic amenities and water play.
Ross Planning estimated (in 2019/20) that the project could cost in the range of $40 to $60 million. With funding expected to be constrained, they suggested a staged approach to implementing the master plan:
– Initial – Bulk earthworks, services and access infrastructure
– Stage 1 – Sports field sub-precinct and Bike activity sub-precinct
– Stage 2 – Recreation sub-precinct and Wetland and forest sub-precinct
– Stage 3 – Conservation sub-precinct.
The officers’ report noted that Redland City needed about 75 hectares of sporting land. The Heinemann Road master plan was only going to deliver about 21 hectares of sport and recreation land. This was a huge reduction from the 46 hectares of sporting land that the Council anticipated when purchasing the Heinemann Road property in 2017.
Councillors were understandably disappointed that the land they bought wouldn’t cater for many sports because of the site constraints. The rugby league club didn’t want to move from Pinklands. And there was no line of sight to funding for the much-wanted new sports and recreation facilities.
Concept design: 2020-2021
In 2020/21 the Council prepared a new five year corporate plan “to 2026 and beyond”. The Redlands Sports and Recreation Precinct was designated a “catalyst project”. Other catalyst projects included the Toondah Harbour Priority Development Area and the Redlands Coast Adventure Sports Precinct (Birkdale whitewater facility). The Plan was put out for community consultation in October and November and formally adopted in December 2021.
The Council announced in November 2020 that Aurecon had been selected to provide a concept design for the Redlands Sports and Recreation precinct. The concept design was to be completed by mid 2021 so that preliminary and detailed design development could follow.
In February 2021, AusCycling announced that it had won the rights to host the 2026 UCI BMX Racing World Championships in Brisbane. This event was to be held at the Sleeman Sports Centre BMX Supercross Track but Redland City Council saw an opportunity to pitch its planned new BMX track as a training venue for the 2026 championships.
In June 2021 the Council approved the selection of four “primary precinct tenants” being the Redlands Touch Association, Redlands BMX Club, Redlands Cycling and Multisport Club, and Redlands Rugby League Club. The officers’ report noted that while the first three of these clubs were “enthusiastic about their relocation to the Precinct”, Redlands Rugby League Club had provided “mixed signals” so the Council asked the Queensland Rugby League to facilitate discussions.
An officers’ report to Council says the concept design was completed in June 2021. A six minute video fly-through prepared by Aurecon and Mode was published, showing football fields, bike tracks, play areas, car parks, and (if you watch all the way through) a trail head for horse riders.
The Aurecon/Mode design included greater detail for the regional play area and separated the BMX track from the criterium cycling track.
Getting shovel ready – August – December 2021
In August 2021 the Council invited proposals from consultants to do the preliminary and detailed design for the Redlands Sport and Recreation Precinct. The work, to be done in phases, included Preliminary Design and Estimate, Permits & Applications, and “For Construction” Documentation.
The firm selected to do this work was Bligh Tanner who estimated the total project cost at $160 million. This was $100 million more than the initial estimate included in the Ross Planning Master Plan report adopted by Redland City Council in May 2020. Where was the money to pay for this?
The Queensland Government awarded a grant in June 2021 to help fund the bike activity sub-precinct ($2.5 million) and the recreation sub-precinct ($2.0 million). This $4.5 million grant came with strings – the Council had to get cracking and complete the works by June 2024.
So in December 2021 officers proposed to Redland City Council that it “undertake an Expression of Interest (EOI) and restricted tender process for construction of Redlands Coast Regional Sport and Recreation Precinct Stage 1 with a view to having the selected contractor work with the design consultant on an Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) basis. Officers said that benefits of this approach, would include:
- Opportunity to commence the construction phase earlier and therefore higher likelihood of achieving the grant deadlines.
- Detailed design deliverables are assessed by the construction contractor for quality and deliverability purposes.
- Reduced likelihood for design rework and therefore mitigating risks, variations, budget overruns and schedule slippage.
The Council gave ECI the go ahead. It announced that “A new 100-hectare sport and recreational facility on Redlands Coast is another step closer”.
Stage 1 works would include construction of the Bike Activity and Recreation sub-precincts and associated works, part funded by the State Government. New sports fields for rugby league and touch football would have to wait a while.
Mayor Karen Williams said the regional sporting facility was an example of true collaboration, with the State Government.
“We have already invested more than $6 million in designing this exciting new facility, with the Queensland Government assisting with a Get Planning Spaces grant of $100,000” she said.
What could go wrong?
Part 3 – Koalas
In Part 3 we will examine the project approval process including environmental assessments.
I feel that the Netball at Pinklands causes more traffic congestion than Rugby League. What about the Pony Club and RASDEG ( Dressage ). What about an Indoor stadium ? We have lots of outdoor spaces for playgrounds but sport is sadly not catered for adequately.