Newcastle Relocation

[Danno]

The Newcastle club will be relocating in the next few years, the site we have been at since 1989 will be subject to redevelopment and the site lease the club has expires 2027. There have been reports that NRL heavyweights are after it and we will just get the shunt as soon as they can get us out of there.


There has been a proposal to rebuild at a swampy flood prone site with dreadful access issues that will get worse when the new hospital goes up near it at East Maitland. I sincerely hope HRNSW are having a joke with us if they think the site is suitable because its not even close to being suitable if you want the game to survive in the Hunter Valley. There are people who think its a great location because it's near their own base, and if they feel like racing against each other for a carton of beer and a ham sandwich in the next short while then it probably will be.


This game of ours has suffered enough from short term self serving thinkers, please let that not be the case AGAIN here in the Hunter Valley, there are a few people still around that may remember the discussions almost 30 years ago about going to the present site....yes it has been great, but once again we are at the mercy of others, as predicted.

[Mister JayKO]

Gee that's disappointing to here Dan, I went to Newcastle for a couple of Mile's (Sabilize and I think Quantum Lobell) and I thought it was a great track (at the time the biggest in NSW). Seems silly to redevelop it, hope it does not end up like the Gold Coast....

[Messenger]

http://www.harnesslink.com/Australia/Plan-reveals-new-look-sport-precinct

The article actually spends no time on the topic of harness racing other than to say they plan to relocate the Newcastle Harness Racing Track

[trish]

Russ said the land was flood-prone and their clubhouse had been hit by water “five-feet” high in the past.


http://www.theherald.com.au/story/4738841/change-of-place-in-sights/

[trish]

WATCH: CEO's Blog where John Dumesny talks about the Newcastle track http://www.harnessmediacentre.com.au/trotstv/tvvideos/31075

[djgood]

hopefully they look at other potential sites that have more going for it one example is the Hydro aluminium smelter at Kurri being demolished , plenty of land ,power and water, front gate has freeway access and the area is growing with houses going up every day

[Beltane]

As at 7th August the Wests Group is set to assume outright ownership of the Newcastle Knights on November 1 after their takeover proposal was overwhelmingly endorsed by the club's members.

The deal hinged on Wests committing $10 million towards a proposed rugby league centre of excellence at Broadmeadow. If, as expected, it proceeds, their investment will be matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis by the state government.

The ridiculous thing is that the proposed centre of excellence shouldn’t need all the existing Newcastle Raceway grounds, but only a part thereof (when the track’s lease runs out), so they should both be able to co-exist.

The grounds that the Newcastle Harness Racing Club use at Broadmeadow exceed the size of the Newcastle International Sports Centre, which to me says that the Wests Group and the Newcastle Rugby League are just being greedy trying to take over the next door harness site with the connivance of the NSW State Government.

This is the NSW State Government that tried very hard to destroy the greyhound industry (and failed), and forced unwanted council amalgamations (some of which were fought out in the courts with the Government throwing in the towel in the end).