$220million Toowoomba Wellcamp quarantine centre given by Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk

A $220million quarantine centre has been handed over to a property magnate after housing just 730 tourists at the 1,000-bed facility over 14 months. 

The Wellcamp facility near Toowoomba, 127kms west of Brisbane, was gifted to the Wagner Corporation on Saturday after acting as a quarantine camp for unvaccinated tourists last year.

The facility went largely unused during the pandemic after completing construction in February 2022 just as covid restrictions were easing nationwide.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced prior to construction that Queensland would pay for the entire project after a political spat with then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

Now Josh Wagner and the Wagner Corporation will inherit the facility without cost when the government’s lease expires.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced prior to construction that Queensland would pay for the project, which ended up operating at a cost of more than $300,000 per person

Wagner, one of the state’s wealthiest men, says the area will become part of a $175 million entertainment precinct.

‘This is the worst decision ever made by a state government on behalf of taxpayers,’ Deputy Opposition Leader Jarrod Bleijie told the Courier-Mail.

‘The Premier has never apologised for it and she should because Queenslanders will be paying the price for this waste for a long time to come.

‘It’s a $500,000 a day check-out bill that could have helped Queenslanders in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis.’

The anticipated ‘Wellcamp Entertainment Precinct’, will temporarily house agriculture staff before transforming into a private hotel.

While the facility operated as a quarantine base, the number of people entering the country that were required to use it never exceeded the number of its beds.

The 730 who did use it during its ill-fated tenure equates to a cost of more than $300,000 per person.

Deputy Premier and Planning Minister Steven Miles defended the development of the site, insisting that it aided the state’s post-pandemic recovery effort.

‘This supported our economic recovery and ensured the safety of Queenslanders,’ Mr Miles said.

‘The day before the government announced our intention to build Wellcamp, in August 2021, we had to pause interstate arrivals because all our quarantine hotels were full.

‘There were 5114 people across 22 quarantine hotels at the highest point and multiple outbreaks caused by hotel leaks.’

While the camp was empty, humanitarian groups pleaded with the Premier to allow people in need, including the homeless, to stay there but were repeatedly turned down.

The Wellcamp facility will now become part of a $127 million ‘Wellcamp Entertainment Precinct’, currently under-development by the Wagner Corporation

The centre began construciton during Australia’s peak-pandemic period but only opened in Febraury 2022 as restrictions were already easing 

The Wellcamp facility primarily took in unvaccinated tourists who needed to quarantine in accordance with Queensland’s mandate international travel.

Now the project is being probed by the Queensland Auditor-General, who is working on a probe into the costs and decisions that led to the commissioning of the site.

This probe is expected to be completed within the next two months.

As Brisbane prepares for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Mr Wagner told The Courier-Mail that he hoped the precinct would become a legacy infrastructure project.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Premier Palaszczuk’s office and the Wagner Corporation for comment.