By Megan Gorrey
Nine new rides will be built at Sydney's famous Luna Park next year under a $30 million overhaul, as the NSW government urges tourism operators to invest in attractions to help the state recover from the coronavirus crisis.
The historic park, which opened at Milsons Point on Sydney Harbour in 1935, will close for six months from the end of January in 2021 to allow the installation of six children's rides and a new "Big Dipper" roller-coaster.
NSW Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney Stuart Ayres at Luna Park on Tuesday. Credit: Rhett Wyman
But the new attractions will come at the expense of nine existing rides, including the Tumblebug and the Spider, which they will replace.
NSW Tourism Minister Stuart Ayres announced the upgrades on Tuesday that will be funded by the park's owners and investors, saying it sent "an incredibly strong signal to the rest of the NSW tourism sector that now is the time to invest in your product".
"If you can't operate at full speed, or at full capacity, take this opportunity to invest in your product so that when everything's open again and visitors are coming back you've got a great experience you can provide," he said.
The attraction's managing director Peter Hearne said the upgrades were "an important moment in the history of Luna Park", which has been frustrated by noise complaints, legal action and financial woes in recent decades.
"It will ensure Luna Park remains commercially viable by being transformed into a world-class amusement park that all of Sydney should be proud of, while ensuring we retain the heritage and history of this important icon."
In 2018, the operators had warned the business may not survive, after a Land and Environment Court decision that determined they must lodge a development application each time they moved or replaced a ride.
But the park's future was secured after state authorities proposed planning changes that allowed the operators to make adjustments to rides using streamlined processes that did not require DAs.
Mr Hearne said the upgrade was the result of those changes to the State Environmental Planning Policy, or SEPP, which included public consultation to strike a balance with residents' concerns.
Most of the new rides will replace existing attractions at Maloney's Corner.
"All these rides that will be coming in will comply with those very strict controls that were placed [on the park] two years ago," he said.
Mr Hearne said the new rides would also comply with "the existing regulations relating to noise, height, lights, and hours of operation that have been in place since 2004".
He said the park had "a very good relationship with the local community" and was letterboxing homes in Milsons Point and the surrounding suburbs of Kirribilli, McMahons Point and Lavender Bay about the upgrades.
Local residents launched legal action against the park, arguing the Big Dipper rollercoaster was too noisy, in the 1990s.
Milsons Point resident Joan Street said on Tuesday locals "have not been advised" of the upgrades or return of the Big Dipper.
Luna Park celebrated its 85th birthday in October.Credit: Edwina Pickles
North Sydney councillor Ian Mutton was worried the plans had been made without "any attempt at community consultation" and he imagined "a lot of people would be concerned" about the changes.
"There's nothing inherently wrong with new rides. The real worry is the pressure on finite resources such as roads and parking."
Eight of the new rides, which also include a "family coaster" and a "thrill ride", will be open for the school holidays next July. They will replace existing rides, including the Spider, in the children's section.
The new Big Dipper, which will replace the Tumblebug scrambler ride in the Midway section of the park, is expected to be operating by November or December 2021.
In a press release, the park said: "The state-of-the-art 'one seat wide' train is substantially smaller than the original Big Dipper at Luna Park.
"It has been specifically designed to ride very low to the terrain where appropriate, in harmony with the historic landscape features of the site."
Luna Park is open Friday to Sunday with COVID-19 restrictions. The park will close from January 27 to mid-June, but the functions and events facilities will remain open.
The Art Deco-style venue is based on the success of the first Luna Park which opened on Coney Island, New York, in 1903.
An administrator was appointed and the park closed in 1996, before reopening in 2004.
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