Residents, business people and industry groups will be invited to have their say on the future of the Newcastle 500 under a proposed consultation strategy prepared for the event.
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A motion to Tuesday's Newcastle council meeting calls to place the draft Newcastle 500 Strategy on public exhibition for six weeks.
The March 2023 event will be the final under the current agreement City of Newcastle has with Supercars. A report to council says there is an option for a five-year extension following the 2023 event subject to agreement by the elected council.
The council said it would consult the community prior to entering into an extension agreement. A strategy has been developed by consultancy firm KPMG, which council said "undertook research to identify key stakeholders for consultation and to understand the current context and stakeholder landscape".
The firm's methodology includes a random telephone survey of 600 people, an online survey for the whole community and intercept surveys around the event precinct.
Three stakeholder workshops will follow the surveys before a consultation report is provided to council.
The consultation period would occur before, during and after the March 2023 Supercars event.
Example resident questions include: "do you believe that the event is good for Newcastle?" "How does the event impact you?" and "What do you think are the greatest benefits and challenges related to the event?".
Businesses may be asked "Do you expect/have increased or decreased trading hours?", "Do you think that the benefits of the event for Newcastle outweigh the disruption?" and "Do you expect, or did your revenue actually, increase or decrease as a result of the event?".
Race attendees will also be surveyed, with sample questions including: "In addition to your race tickets, what is your spending budget for your visit to Newcastle?" and "Do you plan to come back to Newcastle again? (if yes, just for the event or as a tourist?)".
The race has long been a contentious issue in the city, with many East End residents arguing it poses too much of an imposition on them and race supporters plugging the tourism injection the event provides.
Newcastle East Residents Group has previously called for council to survey all of the businesses directly impacted by the event, including down to Darby Street.
Group spokesperson Christine Everingham said she was "deeply disappointed" this was not included in the scope, but welcomed the public exhibition of the strategy.
The consultation strategy will be exhibited from December 14 to January 25.
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Sage Swinton
Sage Swinton is a news reporter who was born and bred in the Hunter. She has been with the Newcastle Herald since June 2020, and covers Newcastle council as well as other general news.
Sage Swinton is a news reporter who was born and bred in the Hunter. She has been with the Newcastle Herald since June 2020, and covers Newcastle council as well as other general news.
