Elder Park NYE party gets its money back as council votes to close Bartel Rd for Harvest Rock

Adelaide’s annual New Year's Eve party will finally recover its full pre-pandemic strength after the city council voted to pour hundreds of thousands of dollars back into the event.

Adelaide City Council has approved a big spend on the 2023 New Year’s Eve party at Elder Park.

Council will spend $550,000 on the New Year’s Eve party and provide another $100,000 in grants for business community-led activities across the city.

The celebrations — at the site since 2007 — have been derailed or limited since 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, but Deputy Lord Mayor Phillip Martin has been pushing for a full return to the Elder Park area.

Cr Martin said the plan would mean a welcome return for the annual party at the park. But he successfully moved to have AEDA come back to council with a plan for the $100,000 before it would be given.

The 9pm Fireworks at Elder Park for New Year's Eve in Adelaide in 2019. Picture: Morgan Sette

“I will be interested to see what can be done to stimulate city economic activity around the event rather than just saying, ‘here is $100,000’,” he said.

In the past the area has catered for around 80,000 people on the night – 25,000 at any one time — and this year will feature fireworks at 9pm and midnight.

The funding will be for infrastructure, entertainment, pyrotechnics, marketing, economic surveying and analysis.

But a budget blowout in costs because of wage increases and materials prices means there will be no drone light show.

It came as the committee also approved the closure of Bartels Rd this October, paving the way for the return of the Harvest Rock event.

Councillor Phillip Martin. Picture: Morgan Sette

The committee on Tuesday night rejected residents’ opposition to the closure, cutting the road from Dequetteville Terrace to East Terrace for one week in October.

Motorists have been warned the road will be closed from 7:01pm on Tuesday October 24 to 11:59pm on Monday, October 30.

The closure was supported by SA Police, SAAS and MFS, but some residents objected.

One city business, which has not been named by council complained that; “City businesses rely on customers accessing the city easily”.

“Closing arterial access roads to the city discourages our customers and sends them to our competitors in the suburbs.

The Harvest Rock 2022 in Rymill and King Rodney Parks, Adelaide. Picture Emma Brasier

The Harvest Rock 2022 in Rymill and King Rodney Parks, Adelaide. Picture Emma Brasier

“Priority needs to be given to the needs of city ratepayers who are there 365 days a year, not to fly by nighters who come in for 2 days then disappear.

“Closing Bartels Road for 8 days for 2 day event is excessive and cannot be justified.”

An unidentified resident stated: “Eight days? Eight days? What amateur organisers”.

“Formula 1 did not cause that sort of disruption.

“And this, for two days of noise! This is unacceptable repeated punishment to the Eastern suburbs not to mention the birdlife.”

Both the Harvest Rock road closures and New Year’s Eve spending will need to be rubber stamped at a full council meeting next Tuesday night.