Final renders released for Brisbane Lions HQ
The Brisbane Lions have released the final renders for The Reserve Community Arena at Springfield ahead of the construction phase next month.
By Spring 2021 the AFL club will have officially moved their training and administration headquarters to the new facility, in time for their first AFLW matches at the arena in 2022.
The Lions secured the final piece of funding for the $70 million project in January 2019, and while the final renders aren’t too dissimilar to those presented a year ago, there are some changes.
The roof no longer continues around half of the boutique stadium and instead, the grandstand on the wing sits by itself, separate from the main building. The ground is expected to have a capacity of around 10,000 and will feature lighting for night matches.
The southern arena plaza that supporters will cross upon arrival from Springfield Central train station features an events lawn to host Lion Park activations and an indoor training field. The gardens will showcase the best of Brisbane’s subtropical flora, including species that flower in Lions colours throughout the season.
The arena renders also celebrate the Club’s proud Fitzroy past, with the grandstand paying homage to Fitzroy’s Brunswick Street Oval. In Queensland, this red brick design is also strongly linked with Ipswich’s industrial heritage. Queensland supporters may also recognise the expansive balconies and timber as common features of traditional Queenslander architecture.
Spectator seating in the grandstand, hill areas and tiers around the oval have been designed to bring members and supporters as close to the footy as possible. A flat oval surface will greatly-enhance fence line views of the action. A mix of seating and standing options and cover will improve the Lions match experiences in hot and wet weather.
The venue is located 26km south-west of the Brisbane CBD and will host AFLW and NEAFL home games for the club, as well as AFL pre-season matches. The Lions will mostly train at the new venue, but continue to play home AFL matches at the Gabba.
The Brisbane Lions will play their 2020 AFLW home matches at Hickey Park, with their first game on Saturday afternoon against the Adelaide Crows.
Construction on the training and administration facility is scheduled to start in March, with completion expected by November 2021.
A live camera of the site is available here.
