Council approves mega music festival on Coolangatta Beach

GOLD Coast City Council has voted to allow the SandTunes festival, an offshoot of mega US music meet the Hangout Festival, to be held on Coolangatta Beach. And it’s set to lure some huge acts.

Coolangatta Beach will host the new SandTunes music festival on December 1-2, 2018. Picture Glenn Hampson

GOLD Coast City Council has given the green light to a new two-day music festival to be held on Coolangatta Beach in December 2018.

Council today voted to allow the SandTunes festival, an offshoot of mega US music meet the Hangout Festival, to be held on the beach on December 1-2, 2018.

Two councillors voted against the proposal — Division 14 councillor Gail O’Neill and Division 12 councillor Pauline Young.

The festival, to be produced by a consortium lead by TEG Dainty, US partner AEG and local partner Cross Promotions, will be a one-off Australian ‘destination’ event with two stages designed to cater for up to 35,000 people..

Speaking against the proposal, local area councillor Gail O’Neill said she strongly objected to the event being held on the beach.

“I think it’s totally unacceptable,” Cr O’Neill said.

“I love the Gold Coast, I love festivals, I love music events but this belongs somewhere else, not on Coolangatta Beach.”

Cr Gary Baildon, who voted in favour of the proposal, said he was concerned about plans to use 300 buses to move crowds in and out of the event precinct.

Deputy Mayor Donna Gates said the festival was too great an opportunity for the Coast to pass up.

“I’d have to say we are extremely lucky and this is a major coup for the city,” she said.

Cr Gates said TEG Dainty CEO Paul Dainty was one of the five biggest promoters in the world.

“He could have taken this proposal anywhere in the world but we have the most beautiful beaches in the world,” she said.

A new offshoot of the US HangOut Festival will be staged in an area currently used for Opera on the Beach at Coolangatta. Image supplied.

The festival is expected to help fill the $60 million hole left on the Coast’s summer events calendar in the wake of the demise of the Big Day Out and Summafieldayze.

Division 8 councillor Bob LaCastra spoke in favour of the proposal but said more consultation needed to be done in the lead up to the event.

“We do have over a year to go,” he said.

“Paul Dainty Corporation are a big player. This is what they do, they’ve been doing it for a long time and they do it really well.”

Cr La Castra said the event would sell mid-strength alcohol.

“This event could go anywhere — there would be venues around Australia lining up to take it,” he said.

Economic Development and Major Projects Committee chair and Division 11 councillor Hermann Vorster said the event would come “at no cost to council”.

“We get everything we want as a city without having to put our hands in our pocket,” he said.

Cr Vorster said Mr Dainty had toured groups including Queen, Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, Guns N Roses, Eminem, Bon Jovi, The Jersey Boys and the Rolling Stones — “and perhaps Bob La Castra”.

“These are global acts with sophisticated backing that would not do business with groups that present risk to them,” he said.

“This is a group we can deal with and be comfortable with in our dealings with them.”

More in tomorrow’s Gold Coast Bulletin.