New Gold Coast Showground 2014

Project overview*

Project Status Planning
Description The new showgrounds will provide a multi-use venue for a variety of community, leisure and recreation uses
Location/s

Carrara
Local government/s Gold Coast City Council
Investment

$60 million
Expected completed

2014

The new Gold Coast Showground will be located on the southern side of the Nerang–Broadbeach Road, opposite Metricon Stadium.

The showground will be the new home to the Gold Coast Show from 2014 however until it is developed, the Gold Coast Show will continue to be held at its current home at Gold Coast Parklands.

The development of the new showground will enable the show to move from its current home at Parklands, making this space available for the development of the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct and the Commonwealth Games Village.

By locating the new showground at Carrara, it will further enhance this significant sports and entertainment precinct, creating a premier location for major sporting and community events on the Gold Coast.

Project background

Introduction

On 10 May 2011 the Queensland Government announced it would establish a new Gold Coast Showground at Carrara.

The announcement followed an extensive site selection and assessment process, undertaken by the State Government and Gold Coast City Council.

The Gold Coast Show is currently held at the state-government-owned Gold Coast Parklands site. The Parklands site will close on 30 September 2013.

Given the show's importance to the Gold Coast community, the government is committed to ensuring the show has a purpose-built and permanent home in the Carrara Sports and Entertainment Precinct.

The government will work with the Gold Coast City Council, the Gold Coast Show Society and other precinct stakeholders and potential users to plan and develop a new showground that meets the community's requirements.

The Gold Coast Show is held annually, in either late August or early September. The first show at Carrara will be held in 2014.

Site selection

Based on previous reports and studies carried out by various state government agencies and the Gold Coast City Council, five possible sites for the new showground were identified.

Each of the sites was analysed against the requirements of the Gold Coast Show Society for holding the show, including:

  • total area
  • public transport access
  • road access
  • location
  • site delivery
  • visibility
  • compatibility with adjoining land uses
  • consistency with planning intent.

Only the Carrara South site met all of the selection criteria.

Download the Gold Coast Showground Site Selection Report (PDF, 6 MB)

Flood assessment

Following the upgrade of the Metricon Stadium at Carrara, the state government investigated the development of the surrounding land, including the Gold Coast Showground site at Carrara.

As part of the project assessment, the government commissioned consulting engineers ARUP to assess the risk of flooding on the Carrara South site.

ARUP's flood assessment report concluded the following:

  • Nerang River flows have never exceeded the threshold of inundation of the Carrara Sports Precinct's land above the five-year average recurrence interval (ARI)* during the winter and spring months (when the Commonwealth Games and Gold Coast Show are expected to be held).
  • Based on a seasonal analysis of 90 years of stream recording, it is predicted the probability of the proposed site being inundated above the five-year ARI during August-September (when the Show is traditionally held) is minimal (less than one occurrence in 500 years).
  • It is therefore extremely unlikely that the holding of the Show at Carrara would be adversely affected by flooding.
  • During those times of the year when the site is not being used for the Show (or the Commonwealth Games), it will be available for other community uses.

Download the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and Show Ground Flood Assessment Report (PDF, 8.13 MB)

* The Average Recurrence Interval, or ARI, is a statistical estimate of the average period in years between the occurrence of a flood of a given size or larger (e.g. floods with a discharge as big as, or larger than, a 100-year ARI flood event will occur on average once every 100 years). The ARI of a flood event gives no indication of when a flood of that size will occur next.