LAST week I attended the Logan Legacy Forum at Logan Entertainment Centre.
It was all about what the Olympics can do for our city.
We are the beating heart of South East Queensland: you can’t move people or products through our region without coming through our city.
Uncle Ted Williams calls us the centre of everything, and I reckon he’s spot on.
So why shouldn’t Logan get an Olympic event?
2032 isn’t a once in a generation opportunity and it’s not a once in a lifetime opportunity.
We will only get one shot ever at our first Olympics and we need to make it count.
Yes, we have a fantastic nine-court Indoor Sports Stadium being built.
The State and Federal Government are leaning in to deliver this piece of sports infrastructure that our community needs irrelevant of the Games.
It is about to go out to tender and if the stars align construction will begin late this year.
The State’s first piece of Olympic infrastructure will come out of the ground right here in Logan.
We’ve also seen the single biggest investment in public transport in our city’s history. We’ve got new bus routes and services to our growth fronts including more than $5 billion invested in Kuraby to Beenleigh Faster Rail.
The duplication of the tracks and the uplift of stations like Woodridge, Loganlea and Beenleigh will change the face of our city and those centres forever.
It’s transformational, but you know what?
I think we can do even more. We need to put Logan on the world stage.
That’s where baseball comes in. It wasn’t a sport for the Paris Games, but it will be back for LA.
It’s one of the most popular sports in the world, and the broadcast rights are worth a fortune.
Let’s dream big. Let’s get baseball in Logan for the Olympics.
I’ll be travelling to Taiwan and Japan later this year to celebrate 30 years of our sister city relationships.
Two countries who love baseball and Japan is one of Queensland’s largest trade partners. Maybe we’ll find an investor in an Olympic-standard baseball stadium in Logan.
That’s my legacy idea. I want you to dream big too. Let me know yours by emailing mayor@logan.qld.gov.au
