Cox Architecture has been selected as the architect for the new home of the NRL’s North Queensland Cowboys from a design competition process.
Beating finalists BVN Architecture, Hassell and Populous, Cox’s proposal for the North Queensland Stadium provides seating for 25,000 spectators and features a roof design inspired by the native Pandanus tree.
Along with this, the $250 million stadium will offer several arrival plazas and landscaped areas, and an open grassed terrace on the northern side.
Inside will be a range of corporate facilities and amenities. The stadium’s Pandanus-inspired roof will cover 80 per cent of the seating, and has been designed to resist cyclonic wind conditions.
“Our team is excited to have been selected to deliver this transformative project for the North Queensland region,” says project director Richard Coulson. “The stadium design is an expression of tropical Queensland and North Queensland in particular. It combines structural, functional and operational aspects of international modern stadiums with engagement of the environment that is quintessentially Queensland.”
“The stadium provides an identity for the region and an important contribution to the city. Through the development of a ‘fan first’ approach to the design of the stadium and its use to create a sense of place and belonging, we have forged a unique architectural and engineering response that can only be ‘of this place’.”
Construction is due to commence in late 2017 once a contractor has been selected. The project is expected to be completed in time for the start of the 2020 NRL season.
