Newcastle community must have say on new Supercars deal

It was a secretive deal which has had serious consequences for a large number of residents and business owners, bound the council to spending significant sums of money and reshaped streets and parkland in one of Newcastle's most beautiful neighbourhoods.

Mike Baird, the same premier under whom NSW's port container penalties were kept secret from the public and Parliament, arrived in town on September 27, 2016, to announce that Newcastle would host the race for five years.

Residents found out they were now living next to a race track when they picked up the newspaper.

As reported by the Newcastle Herald in 2018, senior council staff then negotiated and signed behind closed doors a "services deed" outlining the council's obligations to the race promoters.

Indeed, this contract includes a clause, added at Supercars' request, that the council organisation not disclose the agreement to any third party, including elected councillors.

So it is no wonder that those most affected by Supercars are now sceptical about whether they will be consulted before a decision is made on whether to hold the Newcastle 500 for another five years.

The council voted last month to consult with the community on extending the deal while noting that consultation was primarily the responsibility of the NSW government, the final consent authority.

The council also endorsed March 10 to 12 as the dates for next year's race, which it says is the final instalment of the initial five-race deal after two years of COVID postponements.

The fact council officers have already written a letter to Heritage NSW in support of Supercars' application to race in Newcastle until 2027 has muddied the waters.

To the race's opponents, including Newcastle East Residents Group, this letter has given the impression, rightly or wrongly, that a decision has already been made.

As Greens councillor John Mackenzie said this week, the matter of whether the council should support Supercars' heritage application should have come before the full council for consideration.

Anything less and City of Newcastle ran the risk of a "here-we-go-again" response from affected residents and businesses.

The council insists it will have final say over whether the race is extended, although the government is the consent authority and will make the call "in the first instance".

The council also says it will be impractical, if not impossible, for Destination NSW and Supercars to foist the race on the council without its support.

"Any inclusion of Newcastle as a potential host city for another five years will be subject to broad community and stakeholder consultation and a decision of the elected council ... mid to late 2023," the council said in a media statement last month.

That Labor supported the Newcastle 500 was well known before last year's local government elections, and, having retained its outright majority, the party can claim a mandate on the race and on its broader program of state-backed urban renewal.

It seems unlikely the chamber will vote next year against extending the Supercars deal, but residents and traders must be given a chance to express their views, both for and against, to the council and the NSW government before decisions are made.

The community and the council now know some things about Supercars we didn't know back in 2016.

We know the race set-up and pack-up takes nine weeks, disrupting residents, visitors, businesses and traffic in a popular part of town.

We know some businesses benefit from the race while others suffer a loss in trade when the fences and barricades are up.

Some do not do as well as imagined because contractors inside the track suck up much of the crowd spend.

We know the race attracted a huge crowd in its first year and that attendance, while still substantial, slipped in 2018 and 2019.

We know the street circuit provides an excellent atmosphere for race fans and spectacular vantage points for spectators and TV cameras.

We know the racing is extremely noisy for residents close to the action for three days.

All of these factors and others should be given careful consideration before councillors and the NSW government commit to five more years.

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