Hunter Park sport and entertainment precinct again left out of NSW budget 2023

The Broadmeadow sport and entertainment precinct, announced in 2015, was not mentioned at all in the 2023-24 budget.

Venues NSW completed its business case for the multibillion-dollar project in 2022 and NSW Treasury has confirmed the business case for a new Newcastle Entertainment Centre is also complete.

A Venues NSW presentation that year showed plans for a new entertainment centre, housing, accommodation and improved sporting facilities.

The budget allocated $16.038 million to Venues NSW for a "condition assessment" for "Newcastle and Wollongong assets", which a spokesperson for Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said was for "safety and compliance works".

It also included $13.27 million for an annual capital plan for the stadium, which includes 9000 new seats on each hill and eastern grandstand, new videoboards and 140m of LED ribbon boards, a renovation of the north-west public entry concourse area, 32 new turnstiles and 25 new hand scanners.

The new seats will be installed in November and Venues NSW says there will be "no impact to the number of seats available at events during this installation period".

The $2.15 million upgrade of the video screen at McDonald Jones Stadium is also set to be completed this financial year.

But there was no commitment to capital works to start the new sport and entertainment precinct.

Mr Mookhey said the government remained committed to Hunter Park and planning was ongoing.

"Work is continuing on that project before funding gets allocated to the agencies that are performing that work," he said.

Newcastle MP Tim Crakanthorp was vocal while Labor was in opposition calling for the Liberal government to progress the project.

His involvement was reviewed after he was sacked as Minister for the Hunter for failing to disclose family property holdings.

The review found the proposal could proceed as planned.