From 3D printed houses to trackless trams, a leading urban designer reveals how Brisbane can thrive beyond the Games

With the Paris Games in the rear view and Brisbane now just one Olympics away from hosting the billion-dollar event, a leading urban planner has foreshadowed that the city must set its sights beyond the two-week event to ensure it remains liveable in the decade that follows. Mike Day is a Partner at global urban solutions, engineering and project management company Hatch and a prominent, multi-award-winning figure in urban planning and transportation. He is a Fellow of the Planning Institute of Australia, a member of Melbourne’s Liveability + Urban Optimisation Standing Committee and has been instrumental in steering visionary urban planning initiatives and led design teams responsible for transformative projects across Australia, New Zealand, the UAE and Asia.

Mike says Brisbane has a unique opportunity to leave a lasting legacy by planning now for the years after the Games, starting with tackling the capital’s housing crisis, building more connected public transport and leveraging technology and existing infrastructure for a sustainable circular economy.

To alleviate the housing crisis, he points to a raft of novel housing forms provided by the urban development and housing industry that could help slash building costs. These include modular, precast 3D printed homes, secondary dwellings in the form of IMBYs (In My Back Yard accessory dwelling units) and rentals close to transport and public amenities. To deliver more connected public transport, he points to mid-tier transit in the form of digital rapid transit and trackless trams.

Mike says, “The Games are a massive opportunity for Brisbane, but they could also be a huge risk if we don’t look to the decade beyond them. Now’s the time to take bold steps to shape the city’s future in 2042.”

Brisbane’s construction market recently overtook Perth’s to become the second most expensive in the country after prices rose 6.5 per cent in a year.¹ The city is also just weeks away from hitting the $1 million median house price after rising to $976,464 in the June quarter², with experts warning the city needs up to 8000 more rentals to bring the rent market back from the brink.³

Amid reports host Olympic cities scarcely break even coupled with fears lower-income residents are also being displaced,⁴ Mike says long-term diverse forms of attainable housing must take centre stage, particularly as concerns rise over construction being tied up to deliver infrastructure ahead of the Games⁵, and worries Brisbane won’t recoup the event’s cost with a 55,000-seat stadium development set to cost $3 billion alone.⁶

5 urban design priorities to ensure Brisbane thrives beyond the games

Highlight and better connect Brisbane’s cycle network

Post Games, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo was largely lauded for her sustainable strategies that included transforming the pedestrian network and ensuring the city was linked by 60km of high-comfort cycleways.⁷

Mike says: “These are golden takeaways for Brisbane as the city has the chance to highlight and better connect its impressive cycle network that runs along the river⁸ and past some of its key features such as Southbank. This in turn will majorly benefit the city beyond the games as walking and cycling infrastructure enhances liveability and just like public transport connectivity, it’s key to easing the cost-of-living crunch.”

Implement permanent solutions to support community members doing it tough

In the lead up to the Games, Paris came under fire after thousands of homeless were moved on in a bid to clean up the city.⁹ Amid a housing crisis that’s already seen rising rates of residents forced to sleep rough as community support services buckle under the strain,¹⁰ Mike warns Brisbane must put in measures now to support its most vulnerable residents or face a worsening problem beyond 2032.

“Delivering diverse housing forms and affordable rentals close to transport and public amenities could ease that strain.”

Improve transport connectivity

Mike says Brisbane needs to take a leaf out of Sydney’s book and deliver a transport-oriented development plan akin to that of the NSW capital.¹¹

“This would involve earmarking areas around train stations as mixed use, walkable neighbourhoods containing an array of housing types for essential workers ensuring residents s have immediate access to public transport, which will alleviate the need for car ownership, which the Automobile Association of Australia has established costs $26,000 per annum to own and run two cars in Brisbane…he says.

He says a mid-tier transit network such as autonomous trackless trams could be a great option for the capital, as they are an environmentally friendly, electric public transport solution that’s flexible, cost-effective and doesn’t require tracks.¹²

“Digital Rapid Transit or Trackless trams can carry up to 150 passengers and reach speeds of 70km per hour and they are designed to reduce traffic congestion and emissions while enhancing public transport accessibility.”

Leveraging Brisbane’s unique assets

While Brisbane doesn’t have an Eiffel Tower, it’s rich in natural icons, argues Mike, including its weather, the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Stradbroke Island, the Glasshouse Mountains, and Mount Coot-tha.

Rather than use tax-payer dollars to build Olympic-only infrastructure that historically has been ill-utilised post Games¹³, Brisbane must take a lead from Paris

Mike says: “Brisbane might not have the global pulling power of Paris, but it has something special that we need to showcase. The Games should be an opportunity to highlight these assets and from an urban solutions perspective, playing to our strengths and using what we already have is crucial for economic success.”

Enhance the city’s circular economy

To boost sustainability and create a circular economy for 2042 and beyond, Mike says Brisbane could take a leaf out of Singapore’s book and implement city-wide smart waste management systems using IoT sensors for real-time monitoring, optimise waste collection, and improve recycling efficiency.¹⁴

He adds that leveraging technology to create a smarter city is a legacy plan Brisbane should also set its sights on for 2042.

¹ https://www.afr.com/property/commercial/how-higher-building-costs-will-shape-the-brisbane-olympics-20240620-p5jnj3
²https://www.domain.com.au/news/brisbane-house-prices-hit-a-record-high-but-how-close-is-the-1m-mark-1304866/
³https://www.domain.com.au/news/brisbane-rents-hit-record-highs-as-tenants-max-out-budgets-in-many-suburbs-1299087/
⁴https://edition.cnn.com/2024/07/26/economy/olympics-economics-paris-2024/index.html#:~:text=
The%20short%2D%20and%20long%2Dterm%20impacts%20also%20include%20invisible%20costs,
potential%20environmental%20harm%2C%20Zimbalist%20said
⁵https://www.qut.edu.au/research/study-with-us/vacation-research-experience-scheme-student-topics/vres/making-the-housing-crisis-better-or-worse-what-will-be-the-housing-legacy-of-the-brisbane-2032-olympic-games
⁶https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/othersports/article-13216163/Brisbane-Olympics-Games-2032-cancelling-scrapping-hosting-stadium-Queensland-government.html
⁷https://tbgpartners.com/matter/2024-paris-olympics-eco-fantasy-or-game-changer/
⁸https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/things-to-see-and-do/outdoor-activities/riding-in-brisbane/cycling-brisbane
⁹https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/jun/03/homeless-people-removed-from-paris-before-olympics
¹⁰https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-08-09/council-removes-tent-during-homelessness-week/104196268
¹¹https://www.planning.nsw.gov.au/policy-and-legislation/housing/transport-oriented-development-program/transport-oriented-development
¹²https://www.stirling.wa.gov.au/your-city/news/2023/november/trackless-tram-trial-underway
¹³Olympics legacy – what happened to the stadiums and venues of past Games? | South China Morning Post (scmp.com)
¹⁴https://bnl.sg/smart-city-waste-management-building-the-future-with-bnl/