NSW stadiums boss Tony Shepherd wants one major event every month

NSW stadiums boss Tony Shepherd wants Formula One cars zooming over the Cahill Expressway in a bid to take the Grand Prix away from Melbourne.

Sydney needs to hold a world class event every month of the year to attract national and international tourists once the borders open — and the Formula One Grand Prix should be top of that wishlist.

Stadiums supremo Tony Shepherd said Sydney should steal the GP from Melbourne and have Formula One cars roaring across the Cahill Expressway to showcase the best of Sydney to the world.

“The people of NSW love motor racing as much as anybody and we have a world class city to stage it,” he said. “We would need to choose the route carefully to avoid disrupting people but it would be a great way to sell our city to the world.”

The Grand Prix costs Melbourne $30m a year. The chief executive of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, Andrew Westacott, has warned if it is cancelled again race organisers may look at an alternative to the Victorian capital.

Sydney could have Lewis Hamilton (centre) driving over the Cahill Expressway if Tony Shepherd has his way. Picture: AFP

New Years Eve fireworks is a huge event on Sydney’s schedule, but Mr Shepherd says too much of it is empty. Picture: Toby Zerna

But that is just one event — Mr Shepherd wants to fill an annual events calendar that currently is almost half empty.

“Our goal at Venues NSW is to have a major event in the state every month,” he said. “The idea is to fill up the year so that every month people have something to look forward to.”

Mr Shepherd, the chairman of Venues NSW and Bradfield board member, believes events will help drive tourism and reignite the NSW economy. “It would be a great ambition to hold a major event every month that would appeal to local and international visitors,” he said.

Currently the winter months are barren wastelands for events. Mr Shepherd believes new and revamped stadiums, theatres and museums could help attract international acts to come and perform here.

“With the venues we have now, particularly with an opening and closing roof on Stadium Australia, we could have acts such as Adele coming over to perform in the winter months when we are quiet,” he said.

Mr Shepherd wants acts like Adele coming here in the winter months when we are quiet. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

He says the event could take place at Stadium Australia. Picture: Getty Images

The idea has won the support of NSW 24-hour Economy Commissioner Michael Rodrigues who said: “Having Sydney hosting major events every month would excite residents as well as attract visitors to NSW, boosting our 24-hour economy.

“Sydney already boasts some of the world’s best international events, but has so much potential to become the global-leader when it comes to major arts, culture, sporting and business events.”

Mr Rodrigues said boosting the events calendar would also create new opportunities.

“Major events not only bring investment to Sydney, they also bring people together and showcase the very best our city has to offer. They also have the potential to drive innovation and business opportunities for local economies,” he said.

Hamilton producer Michael Cassel said Sydney’s theatres should also play a part.

“This year in Sydney, we’ve seen what live entertainment means for a city as our theatres turned on their lights, our concert venues opened their doors and audiences returned in droves to experience storytelling, in all its forms, live: in that moment, a unique experience for every audience member,” he said.

“Nothing beats the experience of live entertainment.”

The Sydney to Hobart yacht race is another key event. Picture: AAP Image

Also key to putting the economy back on its feet are business events and conferences which Business Events Sydney chief executive Lyn Lewis-Smith said pumped more than $1bn of direct spending into the NSW economy every five years.

“When we bring these events to Sydney – one event we have on the books is known as the Olympics of artificial intelligence and machine learning for instance – they attract the best in that field from around the world,” she said. “It’s an investment and talent attraction play on steroids.”

On Tuesday the NSW government offered to offset venue costs, matched dollar-for-dollar with the organiser, to kickstart business events.

Jobs, Investment and Tourism Minister Stuart Ayres said the new Accelerate program “is an excellent opportunity to revitalise as we all focus on getting businesses and employees back into our CBDs”.

He said 2022 was already shaping up to be a “bumper year” of events, kicking off with a six-day festival taking over the Cahill Expressway followed by the Ashes, ATP Cup, Golden Guitar and a reimagined Sydney ­Festival.