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Goulburn Mulwaree Council is understood to be seeking for the embattled Wakefield Park to be given special status on the basis of its economic contribution to the area.
The revelation is contained in a letter from New South Wales’ Shadow Minister for Planning, Paul Scully, to Mayor Peter Walker, which has been obtained by Speedcafe.com.
According to Mr Scully’s correspondence to Cr Walker, dated July 22, Goulburn council is thought to be seeking two possible means of saving Wakefield Park, which faces an uncertain future due to last month’s Land and Environment Court (LEC) ruling.
“I understand Council is proposing the Minister consider two possible planning pathway options to navigate the implications of the LEC decision whilst permitting the operation of the Wakefield Park Raceway,” he writes in reference to his counterpart in government, Minister for Planning Anthony Roberts.
“These options include amending the existing Motor Sports Events Act 2022 to include Wakefield Park or declaring the area a new Special Activation Precinct (SAP).”
Curiously, the provisions of the Motor Sports Events Act would appear to be concerned with street circuit events, noting that the law essentially carves motorsport out of the Major Events Act 2009.
Race meetings at Wakefield Park would hardly have been considered major events under that legislation, and a majority of clauses in the new Motor Sport Events Act fall under Part 2, entitled ‘Motor racing other than on licensed racing grounds’.
A Special Activation Precinct, on the other hand, is a location within a regional area of the state with particular economic opportunities.
According to the state planning department’s website, “Special Activation Precincts are a new way of planning and delivering industrial and commercial infrastructure projects in dedicated areas in region NSW, by bringing together planning and investment support services.”
By way of example, the Williamtown SAP was created to promote jobs and economic growth associated with Newcastle’s existing air force base, with a 40-year masterplan to be created for the area.
How Goulburn Mulwaree Council might fare in having an SAP created for Wakefield Park would presumably rest largely on demonstrating its importance to the local economy.
One potential sticking point, however, is that the circuit is located in an area zoned RU1 for ‘Primary Production’, which motorsport activities are arguably not consistent with.
Notable in that regard is that one of the objectives of Goulburn’s RU1 zone is “To allow the development of non-agricultural land uses which are compatible with the character of the zone.”
According to Mr Scully’s letter, Cr Walker and/or Goulburn Mulwaree councillors/staff have requested a meeting with the planning minister to discuss the two aforementioned options.
It is not known if that meeting has yet occurred.
Meanwhile, it is understood that Wakefield Park is in closedown mode effective next month, which is consistent with the cancellation of a state event that was supposed to be held on September 17-18.
According to public communication from the SuperSports Race Car Club of Australia earlier this month, circuit management advised that it is “not in a position to support any events at Wakefield Park beyond the end of August this year.”
Wakefield Park had limited itself to four days’ worth of race meetings per month so as to not trigger new noise restrictions which came as a result of July’s LEC decision, but it is believed that such a low level of activity would not cover the variable costs necessary to put on such events.
Goulburn council, which sought to impose noise restrictions less strict than those which the LEC ultimately decided upon, has publicly committed to “advocat[ing] for the long-term future” of the track.
