By 2020, The Brisbane Transit Centre and Hotel Jen are set for demolishment in order to make space for the Cross River Rail’s new underground Roma Street Station and Brisbane Live development, reports brisbanedevelopment.com.

The complex has the reputation as one of the city’s ugliest building clusters and many will be happy to see it go. Deputy Premier & Treasurer Jackie Trad said the building is well past its prime and its removal is required, as by 2025, that area of the city will be completely transformed.

The $5.4 billion Cross River Rail project will vastly improve the western gateway to the City commute, and will include the proposed Brisbane Live project.

“Roma Street Station is a key link between the city centre, Roma Street Parklands, Spring Hill’s schools, Caxton Street, the Petrie Barracks, Suncorp Stadium, and the cultural precinct at South Bank,” Ms Trad said.

When the new station is fully operational it is expected to be utilised by over 230,000 commuters per week.

Planning for Brisbane Live is gaining momentum with AEG Worldwide representatives from Los Angeles visiting Brisbane last month to gather information for the Brisbane Live business case.

The flagship inclusion in the Brisbane Live development proposal is a 18,000 seat entertainment arena, plus the Roma Street Precinct which is set to rival the United States of America's LA Live Complex. Populous, a global architecture firm has been appointed to design the complex. Their past achievements include Suncorp Stadium, London’s O2 Arena, and T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The detailed business case for Brisbane Live is expected at the end of the year.

To view the artist impressions on Brisbane Live, along with previous work and future artist impressions of Populous work, visit https://brisbanedevelopment.com/brisbane-transit-centre-demolition-by-2020-for-brisbane-live/.