When Albury and Wodonga councils entered into an historic partnership late last year, Benambra MP Bill Tilley noted in a speech to parliament that it was “a noble quest and not a time for self-aggrandising”.
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Upon signing the agreement, we were told it would help the councils form a stronger, united voice when advocating for federal and state funds as well as planning and building major infrastructure.
Border mayors Kevin Mack and Anna Speedie both expressed an interest in bringing a round of the Supercars to Albury-Wodonga just over 12 months ago.
““I think we would certainly bid for it of there was an opportunity to do so … It'd be up to us to make something of it, but between the two cities we would certainly have the capacity to host it,” Cr Mack said at the time.
Cr Speedie noted: “It would be great for Wodonga and the Border to host such a high-profile sport like the V8 Supercars … (but) obviously there would be a lot of work to do in determining the logistics and hosting of such an event.”
It goes without saying that a round of the Supercars couldn’t be hosted on the streets of Albury-Wodonga without significant government support and a lot of work on the ground.
But it is almost beyond belief that no one has made a call to ask what it would take to bring an event to our region that could be worth more than $20 million to the local economy.
Here we are with the Supercars saying they want to replace Sandown on the calendar with a round in regional Victoria and we aren’t even throwing our hat in the ring? Come on.
Supercars might not be everyone’s cup of tea, and that’s fine, but it would take a lot of twilight markets to generate $26 million, which is the figure generated by Townsville’s round in one weekend.
When Albury and Wodonga councils entered the partnership in October last year, they declared a goal of delivering a major infrastructure project before the end of their current terms in 2020.
A regional indoor swimming pool in Albury or Baranduda Fields sporting complex finally becoming a reality would likely appeal to more Border residents as permanent year-round options.
But just as the Border Bash and AFL pre-season matches have become regular fixtures on our calendar, why couldn’t we host a round of the Supercars? If no one picks up the phone to ask, we’ll never know.