James Courtney concerned what Race of Star’s cancellation means for Gold Coast and Australian motorsport scene
A world champion driver says the cancellation of a Gold Coast event puts Australia in the back seat in the world motorsport scene. FULL STORY >>>
Council
Don't miss out on the headlines from Council. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- ‘Couldn’t believe it’: Tears for Coast man’s ‘best mate’
- Life, death and drugs: Coast’s most dangerous bikies
THE axing of a major karting championship on the Gold Coast will seriously hinder the future of motorsport in Australia, a Supercars ace says.
James Courtney is among a growing number of voices concerned the cancellation of the Race of Stars, to be held in Pimpama on November 25-27, would stymie the progress of inspiring supercar drivers.
The event was scrapped after host venue Xtreme Karting was forced to close in July.
The Planning and Environment Court of Queensland determined its practices did not comply with sections of the Gold Coast City Council’s Planning Scheme.
The Race of Stars featured more than 220 drivers across eight classes in 2019.
It hosted participants from Canada, France, Italy, New Zealand and Singapore. Crucially for people such as Courtney, however, it was a launching pad for tomorrow’s generation of racers.
“Stopping the event will massively affect the industry in Australia,” said Courtney, the 2010 V8 Supercars champion.
“There is a lot of money in the sport in Europe and some other countries. This event allowed local riders to compete and impress people from those areas where the money and teams are. It hurts those wanting to make a career in the sport from Australia, no doubt.”
In 1995, a 15-year-old Courtney launched his driving career by winning the Oceania Championships in Raleigh, NSW. He went on to win the Junior Karting World Championship that year.
“I wouldn’t be where I am now if I didn’t do well at the Oceania Championships over 20 years ago,” he said.
Karting Australia chief executive Kelvin O’Reilly said in a statement that the loss of the Race of Stars and Xtreme Karting were another major blow for the motorsport community, which also lost the Gold Coast Karting Club in 2008.
“Every year the challenges for the circuit owners and Karting Australia have been significant to gain council approval to run the event, which provided hundreds of thousands of dollars of economic benefit to the local economy and attracted visitors from all around the world,” he said.
“It’s ironic and hugely disappointing that after seven previous Race of Stars events being conducted at the Xtreme Karting facility, the 2021 edition of Karting Australia’s iconic karting event was to be supported by Major Events Gold Coast (MEGC) once again.”
A public Facebook group called Support Motorsport is opposing the closure.
It has amassed more than 10,000 members in six weeks. A Major Events Gold Coast spokesman said: “(This year) was due to be the first year that MEGC was going to support the Race of the Stars.
“While we are saddened that Race of Stars won’t be returning this year, we look forward to continuing to work with event organisers to deliver a diverse calendar of events for the Gold Coast.”
RESIDENTS SPEAK OUT: WHY KARTING TRACK CLOSED
August 7, 2021
ONE of the Gold Coast residents who won a court decision which led to the closure of a popular karting track says his opposition had “nothing to do with noise”.
He said it was the fact the Gold Coast City Council had allowed Xtreme Karting to operate in his neighbourhood for seven years without proper permission.
The Bulletin last month reported the Pimpama business had lost its appeal in Planning and Environment Court to continue operating. The legal bid was supported by the council, subject to certain conditions.
However, one of the residents who fought Xtreme Karting in the planning court this week told the Bulletin: “It had absolutely nothing to do with the noise. It was about the development and its permission in the area.
“It (Xtreme Karting) has not undertaken the proper development approvals which, among other things, would have not been able to obtain valid insurance.”
In rejecting the appeal, Judge Nicole Kefford rebuked the council’s conduct, saying: “For reasons unexplained, the council has apparently been content to allow the deliberate breaches of planning law on the subject land to continue.”
Xtreme Karting staffer Jeff Smith said the facility had a permit for WRX rally cars and buggies, but chose not to use them because they would have been “too noisy” for nearby residents.
“Technically, the facility was deemed in breach of the town plan in terms of permitted use and had to close,” Mr Smith said.
“The approval had permitted use for WRX rally cars and buggies but the facility was using hire karts.
“There was also some hire karting where people were training using two-stroke karts. Because those karts weren’t mentioned in the permitted use then the facility wasn’t able to operate.”
Mr Smith said Xtreme Karting and the council worked together to resolve the issues before the appeal, but the court didn’t agree to the terms the two parties had put together.
A City spokeswoman said the business had changed its development application in August last year to include the use of karts. The council supported the bid subject to conditions and provided the court was satisfied it would not detract from the amenity of the local area.
Judge Kefford rejected the appeal because the karting facility did not comply with the council’s Gold Coast Planning Scheme 2003.
She said the proposed development would conflict with performance criteria PC19 of the Emerging Communities Domain Place Code, which states: “The proposed use must not detract from the amenity of the local area, having regard, but not limited, to the impact of noise.”
According to court documents, Judge Kefford questioned why the Gold Coast City Council allowed Xtreme Karting to operate unlawfully since 2014.
“It has (council) acquiesced in the continued unlawful operation of a motorsport facility on the subject land since it issued an enforcement notice on 17 October 2014,” she said.
Judge Kefford said it was unfortunate Xtreme Karting had continued with business as usual and even more “troubling” that council allowed it, but that reason alone didn’t merit refusing the proposal.
The Bulletin understands no appeal against the decision has been made by Xtreme Karting and Mr Smith said he believed the business had reached out to work with council on a solution but was yet to hear back.
A City spokesperson said: “The City has received correspondence in relation to this matter and will respond in due course.”
The closure means Xtreme Karting and the Gold Coast will be unable to host the Race of Stars in November.
The facility had held the event since 2013, which had attracted some of the biggest names in the world of karting and brought in thousands of spectators across its three days.
JULY 30: POPULAR TRACK FORCED TO CLOSE
A GOLD Coast kart racing facility that hosts one of the city’s major events has been forced to close following noise complaints from neighbours.
Xtreme Karting was unsuccessful in appealing a decision by the Planning and Environment Court of Queensland to allow the Gold Coast City Council to refuse the karting development in its Pimpama location.
Court documents detail three residents of the local area opposed the development and joined the appeal against the use of motorsport and training at the Pimpama Jacobs Well Rd facility.
Xtreme Karting staff member Jeff Smith said Gold Coast City Council and the business had been working together to resolve the noise issues before the trial but the court didn’t agree to the terms the two parties had put together.
“Gold Coast City Council initially supported the applicant,” he said.
“There’s been quite a lot of negotiations in recent times about how the facility can continue to operate subject to conditions, in regards to noise and so on.
“The Planning and Environment Court found against both the council and the applicant.
“Technically the facility was then in breach of the town plan in terms of permitted use and had to close.”
FULL DIGITAL ACCESS: JUST $1 A WEEK FOR THE FIRST 12 WEEKS
A Gold Coast City Council spokesman said a development application with the council was lodged by Gold Coast Motorsport Training Centre Pty Ltd in December 2014 and was refused in July 2016.
A month later the company filed a notice of appeal in the Planning and Environment Court.
The spokesman said last year the company changed its development application on August 24 and the City Council notified the court that it would now support approval of the “proposed development subject to conditions, provided the court is satisfied that the proposed use would not detract from the amenity of the local area.”
Following a five day hearing the appeal was dismissed by the court on July 2 and the spokesman said the development application was refused “as the proposed use conflicted with the planning scheme, would detract from the amenity of the local area, would have an unacceptable noise impact and there were no sufficient grounds to justify approval of the proposed development, despite the conflict with the planning scheme.”
Mr Smith said Xtreme Karting shutting its doors means the Gold Coast will be unable to host the Race of Stars in November.
The event has become one of Australia’s main karting events since starting at the Pimpama track in 2013 and Karting Australia released a statement confirming the race will not be in the city this year.
“It is with great disappointment that we have to make this announcement. The Race of Stars has become a truly iconic event on the Australian, and the world, karting calendar since 2013,” said Karting Australia Chief Executive Officer Kelvin O’Reilly.
Mr Smith said the event’s organisers had to apply for approval from council to host the race and had never breached the agreed noise limits.
“On each one of those occasions we have had acoustic engineers on site and at no stage during those seven years has Karting Australia ever breached,” he said.
“We have in writing from council at no stage was their engineer able to determine any more noise coming from the facility that wasn’t coming from the road.”
A Facebook group called Support Motorsport at Pimpama launched on July 9 after Xtreme Karting closed and already has 8200 members.
Calls for the facility to be reopened and memories of times spent on the track have flooded the page.
‘Immeasurable’: $2.4 billion sector Gold Coast can’t afford to lose
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate has called for leaders to stop using international students as a ‘bargaining tool’ and to leave them out of the immigration debate. Read why
‘Like a rotting tooth’: Council’s buyback plan for houses
A “cluster” of houses on a Gold Coast street are being targeted by the Council as part of a property buyback scheme. FIND OUT WHY