Macquarie Point Multipurpose Stadium

The Macquarie Point Multipurpose Stadium is a landmark 23,000 seat sports and entertainment venue in the heart of Hobart, serving as a centrepiece of the broader Macquarie Point urban renewal. Envisioned as a state of the art facility, the stadium is designed for maximum versatility, hosting a diverse array of sporting codes, concerts, cultural celebrations, and community events. With tiered seating throughout, the venue features premium spectator zones, elite player facilities, upscale hospitality options, and seamlessly integrated public amenities. The project aims to set a new national benchmark for major public infrastructure, with a goal of achieving a minimum 5 Star Green Star sustainability rating, demonstrating a strong commitment to environmental responsibility and social inclusion.

The Stadium features an innovative timber and steel structure paired with a fixed translucent ETFE roof, enhancing the fan experience while honouring the site’s historical and cultural significance. Its low profile form and woven style façade are inspired by the area’s industrial and maritime heritage. The design integrates cultural storytelling through weaving symbolism, expressing the convergence of cultures, histories, and shared experiences.

This Multipurpose Stadium is designed to accommodate sports as well as cultural, community, hospitality, and entertainment events year round. Notable features include a 1,500 person function room with panoramic views of Kunanyi / Mount Wellington, a seating bowl that immerses spectators in the action, and a field layout informed by cricket ball trajectory modelling to ensure premium match quality. A built in stage pocket enables efficient concert staging with minimal impact on the playing surface. The stadium emphasises accessibility and fluid movement through a single continuous concourse, while separate back of house and catering areas, along with a below ground service road, ensure seamless operations and safe visitor circulation.

Our involvement extends across all phases of the project, delivering specialist accessibility and Universal Design expertise from early concept to construction. Accessibility has been embedded from the outset, ensuring inclusive, intuitive, and dignified experiences for all users including spectators, players, performers, staff, and the broader community. Our approach incorporates compliance with the NCC, AS 1428.1, and the Disability Discrimination Act, while actively applying Universal Design principles to surpass minimum standards. Particular focus was placed on equitable distribution of accessible seating, consistent spectator experiences, intuitive wayfinding, inclusive amenities, and continuous accessible paths throughout the stadium and surrounding precinct.

Concurrently, we delivered Building Code of Australia (BCA) compliance advice throughout the concept, schematic, and design development stages. Our active participation in multidisciplinary design meetings, prompt responses to information requests, and comprehensive BCA compliance reporting enabled informed, agile decision making. Recognising the Stadium’s multipurpose nature, we conducted compliance assessments for a wide range of uses, including sporting events, concerts, and large scale functions, covering the entire venue and its independently operating sections. This thorough process ensured that life safety, access, egress, and fire safety requirements were comprehensively addressed across all operational scenarios.

A key aspect of our work involved reviewing proposed compliance strategies, such as the fire engineering report, and providing detailed analysis and advice on alternative compliance pathways where needed. Through close collaboration with the design team, authorities, and specialist consultants, we developed practical, innovative solutions that harmonised regulatory compliance, operational efficiency, and architectural vision. This integrated approach positions the Macquarie Point Multipuirpose Stadium as a highly inclusive, fully compliant, and future ready venue that exemplifies best practice in accessibility, universal design, and regulatory excellence.