Caption: Qld Racing Minister Grace Grace was on site of the Greater Brisbane Greyhound Centre at Purga, near Ipswich, recently to turn the first sod in $39.15million project. Joining her were from left: Racing Queensland’s Executive General Manager Club Partnerships and Assets, Melinda Martin, Brisbane club president Les Bein, RQ Board Member Dale Cartwright, greyhound participant Anita Watts (with ‘Honey’), RQ Chairman Steve Wilson and Ipswich club president Rob Essex. (Photo: Box 1 Photography)
Construction on the Greater Brisbane Greyhound Centre will soon commence following the appointment of BMD Group to complete the civil earthworks.
In another major milestone for the project, works will commence on the precinct in early March, setting new standards in modern track design once completed in 2024.
Situated just south of Ipswich, the precinct will feature three tracks – a straight track, a much-needed one-turn track and a two-turn track – with racing to be beamed to more than 60 nations across the world via Sky Racing.
The Racing Infrastructure Fund will contribute $39.15 million to help fund the project.
Racing Minister Grace Grace said she was pleased to see construction commencing imminently on the new home of Queensland greyhound racing.
“This is an incredibly exciting milestone for the Greater Brisbane Greyhound Centre, as we take another step towards delivering Queensland’s newest state-of-the-art racing precinct,” Minister Grace said.
“Importantly, this facility will create 477 good, secure jobs for Queenslanders during the construction period, for a sport that contributes more than $170 million to the combined economies of Brisbane and Ipswich each year.
“More broadly, the greyhound code continues to go from strength-to-strength in the Sunshine State, with enhanced animal care, along with record-breaking prizemoney and returns to participants headlining its continued growth and interest.”
With animal welfare at the core of its design and construction, the world-class venue will include:
- A large one-turn track, two-turn track and straight track;
- Track safety benefits including radius and surface banking to be designed in a way to reduce excessive limb forces acting on greyhounds while racing;
- World-class racing surfaces;
- Starting box positioning – including roll on boxes where best suited – which reduces racing interference and supports race safety;
- Starting box design incorporating optimum spacing between contestants and grille heights;
- Grandstand and customer facilities ensuring gold standard customer experience and viewing of all three tracks; and
- Air-conditioned, sound-attenuated kennels with best practice pre and post-racing support services.
RQ Chairman Steve Wilson AM said the project would be a game-changer for the greyhound code in the Sunshine State.
“The commencement of civil earthworks on-site is the first of many significant milestones for this once-in-a-generation project,” Mr Wilson said.
“The Greater Brisbane Greyhound Centre will not only deliver one of the nation’s premier racing facilities, but it will also be an invaluable multi-use asset that the whole community can enjoy.
“Once complete, the precinct will host a number of internationally renowned events, including the Group 1 Brisbane Cup which recently doubled in prizemoney to be among the world’s most lucrative greyhound races.”
