The future of one of a rare railway roundhouse hangs in the balance with a central Queensland rail workshop set to house 1,200 athletes and support crew for the 2032 Olympic Games. The Rockhampton roundhouse is one of only two intact roundhouses in the Southern Hemisphere. The city's railyards, established in the 1870s, sit on a 21-hectare block of prime CBD land. A group of passionate rail enthusiasts hope to retain its historical charm. The main feature of the site is the railway roundhouse, a circular shed with an internal courtyard and fully rotational turntable to move trains around and onto the rail line. "It's [the roundhouse] one of very, very few in the world," CQ Heritage Rail president Peter Draper said. There are seven sections in the building, making a total of 52 locomotive stalls that form a shed for a single engine. The roundhouse is the only full-circle roundhouse constructed in Queensland for steam locomotives. Mechanics shifted towards diesel-electric and electric in the following decades and it was closed as a steam train depot in 1969. It was announced in March that Rockhampton would host rowing for the 2032 games, despite concern from national and international bodies who said the Fitzroy River did not meet the required technical standards. Exempt from heritage protection The Queensland government last month passed a bill in parliament to give the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority power to override 15 planning laws. They included the Queensland Heritage Act, into which the Rockhampton Railway Workshops were entered in 1992. Mr Draper was nervous to hear heritage laws would be exempt from the Olympics venues. "I'm hoping that there's no change with the roundhouse at all because, the Olympics will be wonderful but the significance of the roundhouse, as well as being unique in Queensland, it's something that's too big to lose, particularly for Rocky," he said. "I think there's a lot of potential if it's done right and the roundhouse can be the centrepiece." Member for Rockhampton Donna Kirkland has campaigned for regional centres to host Olympic events. She said the heritage aspects of the Rockhampton railyards site would be taken into consideration during the development. "Anything that's got that historical significance is not going to be abandoned," she said. Mr Draper also welcomed change at the site, as parts of it had laid dormant for 15 years. The Queensland government under Anna Bligh sold off the site in 2010 to Aurizon as part of a statewide privatisation. However, the company closed it eight years later, putting more than 300 workers out of jobs. Then-premier Annastacia Palaszczuk bought the site back in 2022 for $21 million. Successive governments have since spruiked redevelopment for the site. A master plan was unveiled in 2024 to recreate the space as a heritage centre with a family recreational area and hospitality and events spaces. Some sheds have been leased to industrial businesses. "In the meantime, with the dragging on the buildings are deteriorating," Mr Draper said. Future planning Australia has hosted Olympics twice, in Melbourne in 1956 and Sydney in 2000. The village from the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, which accommodated 6,500 people, has become public housing. The Sydney 2000 athletes' village provided housing for 15,300 competitors and officials, built in the suburb of Newington under a $590 million contract. The houses were sold to the public afterwards. A spokesperson for the Queensland government said the Rockhampton athletes' village would also be converted into permanent housing as part of a legacy project. Premier David Crisafulli has previously told media the government would work with the private sector to deliver the project. "I'm very much in favour of the Olympics, I can see a lot of benefits but they need to get in and not make rash decisions and leave us with something that's going to be lasting," Mr Draper said. "It will be great for the city [Rockhampton], bring that part of town alive."