By Greyhounds Australasia CEO CHERIE NICHOLL
In February GA provided a submission to the Queensland Minister for State Development, Infrastructure and Planning, Deputy Premier Steven Miles, in support of the Greater Brisbane Greyhound Centre.
Greyhounds Australasia strongly supports the initiative of Racing Queensland to build a state-of-the-art greyhound racing facility in Ipswich, Qld.
The greyhound racing industry is on a continual path of improvement to ensure the highest standards of animal care and the highest levels of integrity in the racing product.
The Greater Brisbane Greyhound Centre is the strongest demonstration of that commitment in terms of achieving the industry’s animal care and integrity in racing objectives.
Racing Queensland has undertaken rigorous consultation to create a facility that will become the benchmark that future greyhound racing builds will be following.
It is a unique opportunity for Queensland to showcase how our industry has evolved and stepped up in line with community expectation regarding animal care as well as providing an environment through which participants can maximise their contribution and outcomes in the sport that they love.
Equally it is a facility that will benefit both greyhound enthusiasts and the general public through new community and recreational facilities while continuing to support the significant contribution ($140 million per annum) to the local and greater Brisbane economies.
The advantages of note that the GBGC enables:
- Construction of the facility and ongoing employment will deliver approximately 1,000 jobs
- GBGC will be a state-of-the-art facility that attracts the world’s most prestigious greyhound racing events supporting travel and tourism for Qld
- Built from the ground up, ensures that the highest world class standards in animal care both in terms of pre-race preparation and post-race recovery can be built into the facility. These attributes include safe movement corridors, cool-down areas with plunge pools, air-conditioned kennels, and a veterinary clinic
- The racetrack, built from scratch will have the reduction of injuries at the centre of its design and operation with three tracks designed and constructed using evidence-based, best practice safety principles
- The Greyhound Adoption Program for retired dogs will also be catered for within the new development supporting the industry’s objective to find the best forever home for every dog leaving the industry.
This is a pivotal project for Racing Queensland and the broader greyhound racing industry. It is an opportunity to tangibly demonstrate the absolute commitment, care, and passion that our industry has for animal care, racing integrity and the well-being and satisfaction of our participants, while making a significant contribution to the boarder community both in terms of economic contribution but also recreational facilities for use by the entire community. Greyhounds Australasia wholeheartedly supports this initiative and commends Racing Queensland for its investment and leadership in striving to achieve the absolute best for the greyhound racing industry.