The Newcastle 500 had delivered an average return of $36.2 million in economic output and created 149 jobs, according to a survey by Ernst & Young.
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City of Newcastle commissioned the accountancy firm to evaluate community perceptions of the city's major events and also undertake an economic analysis of the Newcastle 500.
More than two thirds of the 650 residents and businesses surveyed agreed the benefits of major events outweighed any negative impacts.
When asked which major event had the most positive impact on turnover, the Newcastle 500 came out on top for both local businesses and accommodation providers in the region.
The council's annual budget for the Newcastle 500, which includes a licence fee to Destination NSW and services provided to Supercars, is $1.6 million. That means for every $1 money invested in the race, $22.60 was returned to the local economy.
More than 80 percent of residents said major events were a benefit for the city.
In relation to the Newcastle 500, 60 per cent were either supportive or neutral for the Newcastle 500 continuing.
The economic assessment also measured the impact of the 2017, 2018 and 2019 Newcastle 500 events. It found an upward trend in big-spending international and interstate visitors had offset a slight decline in total spectators from the inaugural event.
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Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said major events such as the Newcastle 500 and Surfest played a key role in helping to achieve the council's vision of a vibrant emerging global city.
"Newcastle's position as an events city has been growing since the early days of Surfest in the 1980s, but it was only after delivering our first Newcastle 500 in 2017 that the rest of Australia has really taken notice," she said.
"Research tells us that events deliver both an immediate and ongoing benefit for the community and economy, with greater visitation, investment and liveability outcomes.
Business support for events was particularly strong, with more than three-quarters saying the benefits of major events outweighed any disruptions, while 88 per cent believed major events were a benefit for businesses across the local government area.
The benefits of major events were also enjoyed throughout the region, with 96 per cent of accommodation providers outside of Newcastle saying major events delivered benefits to the wider region.
Business Hunter chief executive Bob Hawes said the return of major events was essential as the city emerged from COVID-19 restrictions.
"Events bring a significant amount of economic stimulus, particularly through the visitor and hospitality sectors, which are those that are hurting the most right now because of COVID-19," he said.
"Confirmation from Supercars Australia that the Newcastle 500 would be returning in March 2022 has been very positive news for the Hunter's businesses, and the research released by City of Newcastle matches the feedback we are receiving from many of our members."
Ernst & Young Partner Erik Heller said a conservative methodology has been adopted in analysing the benefits of major events, while the economic impact of the Newcastle 500 was determined by estimating the direct and indirect expenditure of people that visited Newcastle for the event or extended their stay following the event.
"Ernst & Young has taken a balanced, statistically-driven approach in evaluating residents, businesses and accommodation providers' awareness, perception and sentiment towards major events in Newcastle," he said.
"To capture a robust sample of people who live in the Local Government Area (LGA), quotas and weighting have been applied to provide results that are representative of the population of Newcastle based on age, gender and ward populations.
"The weighting process has also been applied to collecting data from businesses, considering 17 per cent of businesses are located in the City Centre and 83 per cent are in the wider Newcastle LGA."
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