Hunter Indoor Sports Centre (HISC)

There is such a need for this project to go ahead. The current stadium is in a state of disrepair and with the growing number of players, often having to play at 2 other facilities. it is time for a new stadium. Newcastle deserves upgraded facilities and it is the prefect place for the new stadium.

The current basketball stadium is falling down, it is the only indoor sport in Newcastle that is cancelled due to rain. The redevelopment is long overdue. This facility is utilised to maximum capacity throughout the year and is unable to accommodate the number of players involved in basketball in Newcastle. The proposed Hunter Indoor Sports Complex is centrally located and will provide indoor sports facilities to the local community & surrounding schools. It is an appropriate use of land in a precinct that is already devoted to sport (hockey, football, league, rugby). It is situated on main bus routes & main feeder roads. This sports centre will be able to support regional
Competitions and first grade games just as the other sporting centres in the current Broadmeadow precinct already do. Newcastle is fortunate to be blessed with plenty of green space and fields for soccer. The proposed indoor sports stadium covers a relatively small area for large proportion of sports participants compared to soccer fields as an example.

This is an important community initiative

I strongly support this submission.

Green space in Lambton is very important for everyone to use and enjoy and for the wild life. This area is prone to flooding. The surrounding houses will be at risk. There will not be enough parking. There will be increased noise pollution in the neighborhood. Once the land is built on, there’s no going back. There are much more suitable locations. Please do not build this sports venue.

To Whom It May Concern,
As a resident living 40 metres opposite the proposed development site, I am writing to object to the proposed project of the Hunter Indoor Sporting Centre (HISC). This objection arises from the continuous lack of thorough consideration regarding major flood risks, traffic and parking issues, noise pollution, air pollution, light pollution, loss of green space, and safety to the surrounding residential area. Not only is this distressing, as the concerns from my first submission have not been addressed, but the responses and amendments to the development appear to be exacerbating concerns around flood risk, traffic, and the loss of green space.
The quality of the scoping report reflects alarming ethics and standards of the Basketball Association of Newcastle Ltd (BANL) and associated consultants regarding the development. The continuous lack of planning and response to concerns, and the absence of concrete evidence-based mitigation strategies, raise questions about the disastrous consequences of the development of HISC in this location.
The inflated benefits to health and wellbeing claimed by the proponent to gain support lack well-rounded considerations and neglect substantial evidence of the negative consequences this development will bring to current and future generations. An Equity Focussed Health Impact Assessment (EFHIA) completed with properly cited evidence around my two concerns is attached: namely (1) Noise pollution and (2) Loss of Green Space. Please refer to this EFHIA for evidence-based inequitable health impacts this development will have.
Apart from concerns such as budgetary constraints, which are clear with the major funding shortfall and flood risks, I would like to raise issues of traffic congestion and road safety. With attached photos in Appendix B showing the current situation on parking, where illegal and unsafe parking is a daily occurrence when people park in residential streets, the lack of meaningful response except perpetual emphasis for attendees parking on residential streets is distressing and troubling, showing that there are indeed no mitigations around such issues.
The chronic shortfall of the current 55-year-old basketball stadium is undeniable. The population growth in the Hunter region and Newcastle area undoubtedly calls for better-supported sports facilities for sport participation. However, the lack of meaningful and substantive consultation and addressing concerns many community members have raised shows how non-feasible this project is.
All in all, I object to this project and urge the department to find another suitable location for this important development to meet the growing needs for basketball as a sport.
Thank you.
Appendix A – HISC Equity-Focussed Health Impact Assessment (EFHIA) Objection Report
Appendix B - Traffic Congestion Photos on Monash Road

To Whom It May Concern,
As a resident living 40 metres opposite the proposed development site, I am writing to object to the proposed project of the Hunter Indoor Sporting Centre (HISC). This objection arises from the continuous lack of thorough consideration regarding major flood risks, traffic and parking issues, noise pollution, air pollution, light pollution, loss of green space, and safety to the surrounding residential area. Not only is this distressing, as the concerns from my first submission have not been addressed, but the responses and amendments to the development appear to be exacerbating concerns around flood risk, traffic, and the loss of green space.
The quality of the scoping report reflects alarming ethics and standards of the Basketball Association of Newcastle Ltd (BANL) and associated consultants regarding the development. The continuous lack of planning and response to concerns, and the absence of concrete evidence-based mitigation strategies, raise questions about the disastrous consequences of the development of HISC in this location.
The inflated benefits to health and wellbeing claimed by the proponent to gain support lack well-rounded considerations and neglect substantial evidence of the negative consequences this development will bring to current and future generations. An Equity Focussed Health Impact Assessment (EFHIA) completed with properly cited evidence around my two concerns is attached: namely (1) Noise pollution and (2) Loss of Green Space. Please refer to this EFHIA for evidence-based inequitable health impacts this development will have.
Apart from concerns such as budgetary constraints, which are clear with the major funding shortfall and flood risks, I would like to raise issues of traffic congestion and road safety. With attached photos in Appendix B showing the current situation on parking, where illegal and unsafe parking is a daily occurrence when people park in residential streets, the lack of meaningful response except perpetual emphasis for attendees parking on residential streets is distressing and troubling, showing that there are indeed no mitigations around such issues.
The chronic shortfall of the current 55-year-old basketball stadium is undeniable. The population growth in the Hunter region and Newcastle area undoubtedly calls for better-supported sports facilities for sport participation. However, the lack of meaningful and substantive consultation and addressing concerns many community members have raised shows how non-feasible this project is.
All in all, I object to this project and urge the department to find another suitable location for this important development to meet the growing needs for basketball as a sport.
Thank you.
Appendix A – HISC Equity-Focussed Health Impact Assessment (EFHIA) Objection Report
Appendix B - Traffic Congestion Photos on Monash Road

I am supporting the HISC because I love playing basketball and our current stadium is going to be knocked down. I play rep for Newcastle Falcons and there would be more opportunities for us if we had this new stadium.

A much needed development for the Newcastle community to keep our children interested in sports and away from more harmful interests.

This town needs a new basketball stadium. The sport is growing and the facilities are well below standard. Also having it situated in a position beside McDonald Jones stadium and Newcastle hockey makes sense. Broadmeadow needs to be the entertainment prescient in Newcastle. It is also important to note that futsal, volleyball, badminton and pickleball.

I have grave concerns regarding the proposal to erect Hunter Indoor Sports Centre (HISC) basketball stadium, on Wallarah & Blackley Ovals New Lambton.

As my house is directly opposite the footbridge over stormwater drain many cars stop at the end of my driveway to drop children off for sporting activities, the children run across this busy road without looking, and this will only increase.
Lack of traffic lights at junction of Monash and Turton Roads will make it impossible for traffic to exit Monash Road heading south.
Loss of green space for 1200 high school children exercising, school sport and general sports.
Noise and pollution during construction and also when completed with stadium in use, commencing 6am till after 11pm.
Flooding due to cemented car park when at the present time excess water is absorbed by grassed area.
Lack of habitat for local bird life!
Lack of, or misinformation, regarding this proposal has led to both myself and my husband developing cardiac diseases.
The local population covers all age groups but mainly retirees who are stressed and concerned re flooding, traffic, noise, vandalism and crime increasing. In addition, the inability of family, friends, and tradesmen, to visit when large events take place, which will be for 18 hours a day 7 days a week.
Basketball staff and patrons will find it easier to park in surrounding streets rather than stadium carpark with only one entrance and exit, to their car park.
We have witnessed men and boys urinating into the drain, behind existing trees and on our front lawn, once again this will only increase, and also requests from total strangers to use our bathroom!!!!!!
Due to the proximity of our house to the footbridge we have had requests for medical assistance including heart attacks, broken bones, people drunk and falling in the drain, cars in the drain, people incurring injuries. These have been few and far between but will only increase
I am strongly opposed to the development of Newcastle Basketball stadium on Wallarah and Blackely oval.

Do not approve this proposal.
The resubmission appears to have focussed on a few key items which seem to be built form, local visual impact and mitigating emergency flood risk for the site.
There were hundreds of submissions against the proposed location. The BNAL resubmission seems to be a reiteration of what they consider to be the ‘strengths’ of the proposal and cursory, dismissive and flippant responses to other substantive issues raised.
There is a critical failure of BNAL to consult directly with the local affected residents who have valid concerns. Their lack of consultation is clear in their own submissions since direct community consultation with residents is absent in their records of key consultations. This is the first example of the dismissive nature of the HISC submission in conveniently downplaying the lack of consultation of a critical stakeholder. The fact that the community is not supportive of the bid, in part, is due to their lack of ability or desire to engage.
There is a multi criteria assessment stating there are no suitable locations identified for the basketball stadium, yet a major new sporting complex has just been announced by the City of Newcastle in Maryland and there are significant complimentary road upgrades occurring in that area. Clearly there are suitable alternatives.
In another note, I have reviewed the submissions in support the proposal. 50% simply support a new stadium with no considerations to the location and most without consideration of any aspects of the proposal. Why is this relevant? 50% of the supporting submissions have not considered the impacts of the new stadium at the proposed location and simply want a new stadium at any cost.
In relation to the resubmission document “Response to Submissions and Amendment Report“ – 11 Aug 2025, I note the following:
Broadmeadow Place Strategy
The submission does not support the Broadmeadow Place Strategy. BANL lease expiration facilitates the strategy. The submission does not. The proposed location is outside the area identified in the strategy and neither facilitates or compliments the strategy. The criticality of the deadline for the end of the lease (p. 22) creates urgency for BANL, but should not be a consideration for an assessment of the location. The loss of green space adjacent to Broadmeadow is a detriment to the strategy which discusses green space in and around the precinct.
Accessible Public Transport
Several references in the document suggest that the new location has accessible public transport. Broadmeadow Train Station is too far away for regular users of the proposed stadium, one regular bus and two intermittent busses which would service the stadium. The location of this proposed stadium does not align to any public transport strategy and is not in a location that could be considered accessible public transport. This proposed location would be almost exclusively accessed by car (plus some locals on foot)
Staging 3.1.4
The section on Staging (3.1.4) is an example of the dismissive nature of this resubmission and BANL downplaying a significant element of the submission. BANL state that funding is not an environmental assessment issue and is an issue for BANL to resolve following the approval. This comment lacks rigour. While sufficient funding to deliver the whole project may not need to be available at lodging and not an environmental assessment issue, the following items do need to be addressed:
- Transparency and feasibility of the scope. This proposal replaces a longstanding and well utilised public open space on an existing flood zone, so it has many current uses and amenities for the community. Transparency and feasibility includes the likelihood that this proposal can be constructed as the loss of the uses and amenity will be permanent
- The Estimated Development Cost estimate in Appendix G was already likely to be well under budget as it did not align to the Appendix TT Staging Plan delivery timing and the start date for construction is now well past. Construction costs increase the longer a project takes and the later it commences. The latest submission further pushes back the start and completion date, includes a more complex and therefore more expensive design. This impacts the likelihood of the project being completed and changes the economics. The public should be able to assess the economic impact of the loss of a public asset.
An assessment of the REF needs to be made against a project which can be built within a reasonable funding and timing envelope. This project is significantly over scoped for the suggested funding cap and could be delivered, so the benefits cannot be delivered with no payback or value for money.
Please seek an independent cost estimate which includes an assessment based on current dates, reasonable construction contingencies and risks, including the risk of delays between project phases and associated costs so there can be some assurance that what is proposed can be built.
Section 3.3.1 Reduction of Green Space
There is a comment that Lambton High will continue to have access to Arthur Edden and Harker Ovals. These ovals are fully fenced and tenanted by Lambton Jaffas Seniors and Wests Rugby League respectively. There is no access currently for Lambton High. Why would there be access in the future?
3.3.4 Flooding
The flooding resubmission appears to focus solely on impact to the facility and dismissive of local impact. The new design is more impactful for residents and increases upstream impacts in significant rain events because the car park has been raised which will direct more flows into the undersized drain in a heavy rain event.
A concrete car park speeds up water run off so exacerbates local flooding in heavy rain. The current grassed park slows water and because it is lower than proposed it holds water and slows flood impact. In summary, the redesign is worse for residents than the original submission.
The resubmission ignores concerns of residents about the impacts on properties in a major rain event and focusses in impacts to the site and emergency response.
The example of the raised car park is an exemplar of design to mitigate impacts to BANL at the expense of residents.
My initial submission requested an independent flood impact study on residents and upstream. No reasonable effort has been made by BANL to look at this and it appears that BANL has ignored valid concerns.
3.3.5 Transport, Traffic and Parking
It is obvious that the project does not align to a Transport Strategy as there is only one regular bus, one or two intermittent busses and the site is too far away from Broadmeadow station to be regularly used, especially for the young children who will be travelling regularly to and from this site after school.
The resubmission has not considered the impact of the rat run on Young Street to Newcastle Road which will be created.
The BANL still states that they will use McDonald Jones Parking as overflow even though McDonald Jones has made their own submission stating their parking would not be available (Section 3.3.5 of the Response to Submissions states in :Issues: Events management” that the McDonald Jones Stadium could not be relied upon, but in the “Response” by BANL on the same page, they identify 900 parking spots at McDonald Jones Stadium).
On page 55 Section 4.4.7.1, they state that McDonald Jones stadium car park cannot be relied upon and that an updated parking strategy is provided “in Section 6.7 of this report”, but there is no Section 6.7 so there is no alternate parking strategy to assess.
Given that BANL met with Venues NSW and McDonald Jones Stadium in February and March 2025 to discuss this item, why has this not been considered and included in the resubmission?
I would also note that in Section 3.3.5, many other overflow parking areas are identified which are all in the Broadmeadow Precinct. These will all be redeveloped, so none of that overflow parking will be guaranteed in the future, so also cannot be relied upon
There remains a lack of cohesion and contradictory information in the submission.
The City of Newcastle has requested the formalisation of parking spaces on Monash Road which BANL have excluded from the proposal. Submissions against the proposal have identified to BANL that the current Monash Road parking is non compliant and number of compliant parking spaces in Monash is much less that identified in their proposal. BANL have ignored this information and still use their previous parking numbers to support their submission. Another example of ignoring or overlooking information provided to them if it is detrimental to their proposal.
4.1 Consistency of Project with Broadmeadow Place Strategy (BPS)
The project has no relevance to the BPS other than the context of the BANL being evicted as a tenant to facilitate new construction. The location does not enhance or improve that strategy. The fact that the location is excluded from the BPS implies that the parkland was intended to remain to provide parkland for the development of the Broadmeadow precinct, so this is an overdevelopment, not a complimentary development.
4.4.4 Draft Hunter Strategic Regional Integrated Transport Plan
BANL identify retention of the existing shared path. The current path is non-compliant to current City of Newcastle specifications and should be made compliant (wider) as part of the development. BANL have stated no intention to upgrade this shared path, so no alignment to the Plan.
This venue will operate after sun down. It is reasonable to assume more active transport use on the path. From experience, lighting on the path is poor from Turton Rd to Wests and it is adjacent to an open drain. There are safety and security issues that should be a consideration in the proposal.
There are minimal public transport options and far less than the current location.

Do not approve this proposal.

I am a student at Lambton High School and I object to the Hunter Indoor Sports Centre being built on the only green space that we can play on. I went to New Lambton Primary School which had no green space and the best thing about coming to Lambton High was the grass! We have space for sport and PE lessons and I play out on Wallarah and Blackley Oval every lunchtime. If the stadium is built there we won't be able to exercise and get fresh air, which I need to do as a break from lessons. Instead I will be looking at a huge concrete building built on the school's boundary. We already have 2 concreted basketball courts and an MPC for basketball within our school grounds, what we don't have is grass and open space. Why is it our school that is negatively impacted by this? No one at our school wants this, even the kids who play basketball and it seems no-one is listening. When we have a school evacuation, where will we be able to safely evacuate to? It's dangerous. Please DO NOT take away our green space.

My thoughts and concerns are detailed in the attachment. As an additional note. My concern is the long lasting impact to my family and my response includes points on noise pollution, flooding, loss of greenspace, impact on my kids schooling, parking and road safety.

I remain opposed to the stadium and do not believe my initial concerns have been adequately addressed. In fact, they are worsened by the fact that traffic overflow is now escalating to surrounding streets (where to the local residents’ park?), the building is higher (and will reduce nature light to my kids’ school and classrooms) and the green space they have offered is actually also supposed to capture flood water. I have therefore reiterated my concerns below.
Outlined below are reasons that I believe this Indoor Sports Centre is not a "good fit" for the location.

Traffic congestion, parking and pedestrian safety:
I'm a local resident who has now been in the area for a year from a different Newcastle location and already can see big differences in traffic and parking due to being close to existing sporting venues.
Traffic is already busy during the hours of 4-7pm due to local traffic coming home from work, and current sporting groups training in the area. Then when the hockey field/stadium/high school/industrial facilities are in use traffic greatly increases. This HISC will exacerbate what is already traffic chaos during events at the stadium (Knights and Jets games, concerts etc.), the high school and hockey fields, causing considerable disruption to local residents.
Parking is already difficult in surrounding narrow streets just with cars belonging to residents, businesses and the local high school. I already have trouble finding a spot out the front of home during a normal week. This is already far worse during events at the stadium with parking stretching to into nearby suburbs, Wests Leagues Club carparks and surrounding streets, which significantly impacts residents and local businesses. I have frequently seen cars parked across people’s driveways, on corners, in no parking areas during these events, which makes it difficult to be on the road during these times and quite unsafe for pedestrians. This will only be made worse by adding an additional 2500 capacity stadium with only 250 car spaces allocated.

Loss of green space:
My children currently play soccer, junior cricket and one attends Lambton High School, and they utilise these fields regularly, even just going down and kicking the ball after school My children don’t have a backyard, so this close green space is ‘their’ backyard. With future proposed housing to further increase in the coming years in to medium/high density living, we should be leaving the current green spaces alone.
The purposed green space is also to be used for “capturing the flood water” with all the recent rain we have had and will continue to have this is not an adequate solution, this is a DANGEROUS solution. The current green space helps to soak up the excessive rain and assist with the current canal solution, but during these excessive heavy rain periods we see the impact that this water has on the roads (potholes), sinkage. If you remove the current green spaces, that water has nowhere to go and areas like the COLA at the high school, local roads and homes will be affected by the excess water.

Lambton High School will lose access to its green space that is currently leases from council. This is needed to fulfill their curriculum of sports and to support their health and wellbeing. While the stadium has indicated it would provide students with access to its courts, the school already has courts, but needs green space to play other sports like soccer, football, oztag, AFL, cricket, t-ball etc. While there is also mentioned they could use other green spaces, these are further away and would require supervision of additional teachers as they would need to crossroads. Students also use this green space for lunch and recreational time, which supports their health and wellbeing. It is also unclear what will happen to the evacuation procedures as this is currently the emergency evacuation point. Alternative locations would require crossing roads, which is not ideal for 1200 students in an emergency.
My children will also lose access to green space for cricket and soccer, moving them further away to other venues that are already heavily utilised.

Noise and disturbance:
One of my children attendings Lambton High and he is concerned about the noise impacts during construction, and the impact it will have on their learning and exams, especially HSC exams. We are concerned about having to navigate the streets while walking to and from school, with additional construction traffic, road closures etc. while the stadium is being constructed. I'm also wondering where the construction workers are going to park!

Funding shortfall:
It is understood they have a $60 million funding shortfall (Almos 70% short of the $90 million required). It is unclear what will happen if this funding shortfall cannot be, which is highly likely in our current fiscally constrained budget environment. The proposal says that stage 2 is dependent on funding allowances. There is a risk that, if approved, you will allow the removal of valuable green space, in place of only part a stadium and/or corners will be cut to deal with this. WHO IS FUNDING THE SHORTFALL IF THE STATE GOVERNMENT SAID NO!!!

Flooding impacts:
Flooding impact assessment doesn’t adequately consider the flood impacts. For example, the local canal goes from empty to full very quick (I’ve experienced it doing this after just short thunderstorms). Currently the fields provide flood and stormwater retention for considerable time, keeping these floodwaters away from homes and local streets. The report indicates the only mitigation measures proposed are rainwater tanks. There is no way these could store the same amount of water as the existing fields.
The report also says the carpark might flood, so if people are worried, to park in residential streets instead – further adding the too traffic mayhem in local narrow streets that already can’t fit two cars side by side when cars are parked.

Inadequate community engagement:
There has been no adequate community engagement. For instance, over 80% of Lambton High School students’ families were opposed to the development, but we have not been consulted with as part of targeted consultation. Likewise, the local residents in surround streets that I know in Duke St, Rex Ave and Durham Rd have not been consulted but will 100% be impacted by parking loss and traffic in their streets.

Inadequate social impact assessment:
The SEIA for the project does not sufficiently address the effect that displacing Western Suburbs Junior Cricket Club. It’s one of the fastest growing junior clubs for Newcastle. Losing ground will not only limit current capacity but hinder the ability to grow the sport.

Misclassification of the ground utilisation:
The report misclassifies Wallarah and Blackley ovals as underutilised. This is based on flawed analysis from the City of Newcastle’s Sporting Strategy (2020), which measure usage only for winter sports, rather than peak summer usage. Cricket teams use these fields daily during spring and summer, and loss of this green space will add pressure to other facilities, and insufficient replacement grounds (current proposals are inferior in quality and proximity).

I strongly support the creation of an indoor sports centre in the neighborhood. Our community needs more accessible, year-round facilities where people of all ages can participate in healthy activities regardless of the weather.

Objection – Amended Hunter Indoor Sports Centre
(HISC) Proposal
As a young person living in Lambton, just a few streets from where the new Hunter
Indoor Sports Centre (HISC) is proposed. I walk these streets every day. I catch the
bus along these roads. So when people say this development is going to “change
the area” — I can already see how much worse it’s going to make life for people like
me.
This isn’t about being “anti-sport” —I love that our area has so many options. But this
proposal is in the wrong place, for the wrong reasons, and made without real input
from people who actually live here. It’s going to make things harder for the
community, not better.

1. This Isn’t What Local Young People Asked For
I don’t know any local young people who asked for a massive indoor sports stadium
right next to Lambton High, on a flood-prone oval, jammed into narrow streets with
barely any parking. What we’ve asked for — again and again — is:
 Safe streets and crossings
 Flood-safe parks and places to hang out
 Sport facilities that are easy to get to without a car
 Green space that’s still green, not concrete
But instead of improving the area for people who live here, this proposal seems
designed for people driving in from outside. It’s not about locals. It’s not about young
people. It’s about ticking boxes and spending grant money.

2. Traffic and Safety Will Get Worse — Especially for Students
Hundreds of cars arriving and leaving at once, every weekend and many
weeknights, sounds like a nightmare. I already see traffic banking up around
Lambton High and nearby streets when there’s an event at the stadium or footy oval
— and that’s without a mega indoor centre being built.
There are school kids walking, buses trying to get through, cyclists, parents with
prams, people going to the shops. Adding a car park and one single driveway for
hundreds of vehicles in and out is not safe. It’s dangerous. It’s unfair to put that risk
on school students and people who live here every day.

3. Sport Should Be Local – Not Pushed Out
Right now, local kids use those ovals for weekend soccer and cricket. It’s one of the
few free, open spaces in the area where you don’t need to be part of a big club or
travel far to play.
If this centre is built, those fields are gone — and local teams will be pushed to other
suburbs. Meanwhile, basketball teams from across the region are brought in, and
traffic increases.
It feels backwards: local kids get kicked out, and we get traffic jams and concrete in
return. That’s not fair.

4. It’s Going to Kill the Vibe of the Area
Lambton is one of those places where you still say hi to your neighbours. You walk to
the shops, go to the park. It’s a real community.
Putting a giant, overbearing stadium right in the middle of that — with floodlights,
noise, and constant traffic — will completely change the feel of the place. It won’t feel
like a neighbourhood anymore. It’ll feel like a car park with houses jammed around it.
There’s also the issue of flooding — this isn’t just a theory. The spot they want to
build on floods, as does the surrounding area and streets. And they want to put a
stadium and a car park there?

5. Even the People Who Want This Don’t Seem to Trust the Plan
I’ve listened to what Newcastle Basketball has said in their online info sessions. A lot
of it honestly sounded like they were just trying to keep the project alive — not really
thinking about whether it’s the right fit for Lambton.
They said there’ll be a new multi-level car park eventually — but it’s not funded. They
said only the car park will flood, not the building — like that makes it okay? They said
everyone supports the plan — but they’ve never asked local young people, or
anyone at the schools nearby.
Even a lot of basketball families I know are worried. They love the game, but they
don’t want to spend half the day stuck in traffic trying to get in or out of a badly
planned centre. A lot of people will just stop going.

6. There Are Better Places for This
Why not build this in a proper sporting precinct — like near the Uni, or in an area with
wide roads and space for proper parking? I’ve read that other sites were offered and
ignored. If that’s true, that’s really disappointing.
This isn’t about saying “don’t build anything.” It’s saying: build it smart. Build it
where it works. Build it where people can actually get to it without wrecking a
neighbourhood.

7. Young People Are Watching
Maybe people think we don’t notice what happens with local planning — but we do.
We see when projects go ahead that don’t make sense. We see when residents get
ignored. We see when community spaces are taken away to make room for concrete
and cars.
We want to live in places that feel safe, welcoming, green, and active — not jammed
up with poorly designed mega projects that don’t fit.

Final Thought: Reject This Proposal — and Get It Right
This version of the HISC proposal fails on so many levels. It’s:
 Unsafe for students and pedestrians
 Unfair to local residents and young people
 Poorly planned with no real traffic or flood mitigation
 Bad for local sport access
 Based on vague promises and weak consultation
Please reject this proposal and work with the whole community — including young
people — to find a better location that actually supports sport and makes the city
better.
Thanks for taking the time to listen.

Young Lambton Resident
Voter.
Concerned neighbour.

This is an unacceptable location for this facility. Reasons: green space is precious, once lost to development, it is never regained; increase of urban heat island effect in these times of global warming; irrevocable loss of playing space for Lambton High; loss of fields for other sports, unfairly privileging one organised code; parking and traffic in the area is already problematic for local residents and Lambton High; large car parking surface area will increase runoff in a flood prone area, flooding impacts on local residents; poor public transport access. I note also the history of this land being saved for public ownership in the late 19th century. These parks are a quintessential part of Newcastle's character.

I remain opposed to the stadium and do not believe my initial concerns have been adequately addressed. In fact, they are worsened by the fact that traffic overflow is now fully to surrounding streets, the building is higher (and will reduce nature light to my school and classrooms) and the green space they have offered is actually also supposed to capture flood water. I have therefore reiterated my concerns below.
I am currently a student at Lambton High School and, along with the other 1200 students, use this green space multiple times a week for school PE, sport and wellbeing activities. As we will no longer be able to use these fields, I am worried how that will impact my education, health and wellbeing.
I am concerned about the noise and disruption that will happen during construction, including getting to and from school with construction vehicles and road blockages. In particular, I am worried about the noise that will impact me as I enter my senior years and during my HSC exams.
I will also be impacted as a member of Western Suburb Junior Cricket Club. I don’t think adequate consultation or consideration of the impact of this development on my club or its players has been considered. I don’t understand why one sport would get preference over another. There are already not enough sporting fields to accommodate all the sports in this area. Bringing in 2500 people from other areas at the expense of our local residents (who use these fields to play sport, train, exercise, and undertake other recreational activities) seems inappropriate.

I remain opposed to the stadium and do not believe my initial concerns have been adequately addressed. In fact, they are worsened by the fact that traffic overflow is now fully to surrounding streets, the building is higher (and will reduce nature light to my school and classrooms) and the green space they have offered is actually also supposed to capture flood water. I have therefore reiterated my concerns below.
I am currently a student at Lambton High School and, along with the other 1200 students, use this green space multiple times a week for school PE, sport and wellbeing activities. I am worried that we will no longer be able to use these fields and how that will impact my health and wellbeing. I am also concerned about the noise and disruption during construction, including my safety walking to and from school with construction vehicles and road blockages. Finally, I am a member of the local soccer club. Loss of these fields will impact where, when and if I will be able to play.