IPSWICH is booming, with the city’s population surging towards 275,000 amid billions of dollars in economic activity, major infrastructure projects and private investment transforming one of Queensland’s fastest-growing cities.
Ipswich City Council’s 2025-26 Annual Report has revealed the extraordinary scale of the city’s expansion.
It paints a picture of a thriving regional economy, with Ipswich’s Gross Regional Product reaching $16.8 billion, while Council delivered $91 million in capital works and completed 129 infrastructure projects during the financial year.
Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding said the Annual Report demonstrated the city’s growing economic strength and its ability to attract residents, businesses and major investment.
“More people than ever are choosing to live, work and play in Ipswich. More businesses, both big and small, are choosing to open right here, and the local economy is going gangbusters,” Cr Harding said.
The scale of Ipswich’s transformation is reflected in the infrastructure delivered throughout the financial year, with Council completing 129 capital projects, alongside 20.9 kilometres of sealed road reconstruction, 46.4 kilometres of gravel road reconstruction and 2.37 kilometres of new and upgraded pathways.
Major works included further progress on the Springfield Parkway upgrade, the commencement of improvements to Ripley Rd and planning for future upgrades to School Rd at Redbank Plains, as Council attempts to respond to increasing traffic volumes across the city’s rapidly expanding suburbs.
Among the most significant announcements was Hilton’s proposed $53 million, 160-room Hilton Garden Inn hotel in Ipswich Central, a major accommodation investment expected to strengthen the city’s visitor economy ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Meanwhile, construction began on Future Forgeworks’ green steel mill at Swanbank, a major industrial development expected to produce 350,000 tonnes of low-emissions reinforcing steel annually once operational.
Sporting infrastructure also featured prominently throughout the financial year, with work beginning on the $40 million western grandstand redevelopment at North Ipswich Reserve, alongside upgrades at Redbank Plains Recreation Reserve and Tivoli Sporting Complex.
Among the city’s most pressing transport priorities are a second inner-city Bremer River crossing and the long-awaited Ipswich to Springfield Central public transport corridor, two projects Council has repeatedly identified as critical to supporting future population growth.
Annual Report by the numbers
- 274,582: Population of Ipswich
- 35 years: Ipswich’s median age
- 73: Babies born each week to Ipswich residents
- 1,092: Square kilometres – total area covered by Ipswich City Council.
- $16.81 billion: Ipswich’s Gross Regional Product.
- 99,323: Local jobs
- 46.5%: Employed Ipswich residents who also work within the city.
