The current Newcastle Basketball Stadium is 55 years old and no longer fit for purpose.
Our children are forced to play in a facility that floods and has a raft of safety issues. The stadium cannot meet the demands of the number of players requiring the use of external venues which prevents a whole other set of issues.
A new facility would allow a safer playing environment for all basketballers, from our preschoolers through to our seniors.

In addition, a new facility would open up opportunities for other groups that do not currently have somewhere to participate in their chosen activity. A huge international student population means there is a demand for a space to play badminton, which is currently not available. The new facility would be open to this group, providing an opportunity to support a minority population.

The vocal minority who object to this proposal have obviously not taken the time to read the submission as their concerns have been addressed. The proposal includes traffic management plans, flood management plans and support from other sporting associations who are impacted by the proposed development. There is not one argument raised that has not been addressed within the proposal.

The social and economic benefits of the proposed new stadium are enormous and given the detailed planning that negates any concerns, I sincerely hope this project is approved. The future of our town, our children and anyone participating in physical activity depends on having a facility to grow and thrive.

Refer to attached submission

I do not agree with the location of the Hunter indoor sports centre. It is very densely populated area and will impact many residents. There will be no parking and so much noise pollution. It will take away from the green space of the area and make it into a concrete jungle. The Hunter Stadium is already making the area very busy and to have this centre in the location as well will be intolerable. Lambton high school students will have no green space and many community's and individuals use the area. Please can you find another area for this Sports centre.

I am extremely concerned about the impact the location of the proposed stadium would have on residents and Lambton High school. In June 2020 my house flooded. This was an extremely traumatic experience, I lost most of my belongings, my car was written off and I had to move out for six months while my home was rebuilt.

I’m also concerned about the increase in traffic and lack of parking.

Lastly, the students at Lambton high would lose significant outdoor play space and local soccer and other sporting teams would lose training fields.

There must be a better alternative to meet both the needs of local basketball players and the local residents.

I understand the need for a new basketball centre. My son is currently engaged in the Future Falcons programme and I fully support the building of new and improved facilities. However I strongly object to the sacrificing of green space for this project. Parks, ovals and green spaces are every bit as important as built sporting infrastructure and once sacrificed, they are gone forever. The parks and ovals around New Lambton and Lambton are a big part of what makes this are special and chipping away at this devalues these suburbs and the city. My objection is no specific to this location. The same principle applies wherever we have green space in our city. Green space should not be sacrificed for this project. More creative thinking is required to utilise vacant/unused 'built' areas.

I’m writing regarding my objection to the proposed Hunter Indoor Sports Centre on Wallarah Blackley ovals. I live one block away from the proposed stadium, approx. 230m away and did not get consulted about this at all. I only learnt about this proposal by talking to my neighbours and what I read on social media. This is extremely inadequate. Our concerns include loss of green and open space in our local community as well as the impact of extra traffic in our streets and the impact it could have on localised flooding.

Loss of Green space for sporting codes: The ovals are the entry to the green corridor through New Lambton / and Lambton suburbs and have served the sporting community of both local and out of area teams in a number of disciplines over the years - from rugby league, hockey, preparation field for the NRL OPPOSITION teams to more recently the ever-increasing number of Soccer and cricket players. The fields are being used by local community sporting groups both day and night. It would be a great loss to the community and future grass roots sporting stars of the region to lose such a valuable piece of land that in essence is very low maintenance compared to benefits it provides in way of fitness, social interaction, mental health and wellbeing.

Loss of green space for Lambton high school: The land is also used by our local high school which backs onto the ovals and provides the students with space to engage in outdoor sports, relax in an open space or use as an evacuation point. I have seen teachers take lessons on the fields and talk about the wildlife that uses the fields and how the fields are close to our city’s water ways. There is also evidence of the detrimental effects the lack of natural environments is having on children and their development regarding both physical and emotional wellbeing. As children are not being exposed to things such as grass as much now, there are higher rates of allergies, sensory issues and mental health issues such as a lack of self-regulation and resilience. I am a strong advocate for promoting children's rights and feel the loss of such a valuable green space near the High School and local primary schools will have a negative impact on the lives of our future generations. Many say there are plenty of fields around, they can use a different one down the road. I do not agree with removing any green space as our population is increasing, not decreasing so the fields are needed now and into the future.

Flooding and heat: As a flood prone area, I fear the increased run off from such a large structure and concreted area will impact local homes and property. Such a risk will surely increase house insurance to a figure which I have to say in the current cost of living crisis will be out of reach. Prices have already increased 400% in my personal experience of living in the area for 14years. The fields not only help soak up excess water in recent weather events, but they also provide a cool place to relax in the hotter months. The addition of the sports centre with its surrounding outdoor courts and parking will surely increase the temperature in the area as there will be more hard surfaces for the sun to reflect on rather than the heat being absorbed by the grass.

Traffic and parking concerns: Increased traffic and parking in small surrounding streets of the oval is also a major concern. NRL game days already crowd streets for hours on weekends and cars are constantly illegally parking on comers and nature strips as people try to avoid a long walk to the ground. This increases when there is hockey games scheduled at the same time as NRL matches as the hockey players are often encouraged to park elsewhere as their parking is often reduced to make space for parking at the stadium. I fear this will be the case in the event if another stadium is built in the area that operates 7 days a week up to 10pm. I’m also concerned these time schedules will cause noise and light pollution to the surrounding streets, affecting residents’ sleep patterns and mental wellbeing. As the lights will pick up on movement and there are 2 outdoor courts and an outdoor gym in the plans, I am worried that these facilities will be used after hours when the stadium is locked up and the movement of those using them will see the lights coming on and off at all hours. This has not been assessed in any of the reports.

I trust the decision makers will see the logic and evidence this is not the right location for the much-needed basketball centre and can find a more appropriate piece of land which can accommodate for the future growth of the population just as the green space of Wallarah and Blackley ovals can keep providing an open green space area to serve the ever-increasing inner city outdoor sports community.