NSW Premier Mike Baird visited the Cessnock electorate on Tuesday to officially open Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley’s new conference and events centre.
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The 1600-person capacity centre is the largest regional conference and exhibition facility north of Sydney.
Mr. Baird said that the convention centre highlights the potential in the area and helps to bring out the beauty of the Hunter Valley.
“What it shows is a vision,” he said.
“I can see what this can do for the community and the economy.”
Mr. Baird said nine million tourists spent $2 billion in the Hunter Valley annually and the opening of the convention centre will only add to that.
“You can imagine how many [more] are going to come,” he said.
Mr. Baird said he has stayed at the Crowne Plaza with his wife and enjoys the wines of the Hunter Valley, particularly the Briar Ridge Semillon and the Petersons Chardonnay.
Schwartz Family Company director Dr. Jerry Schwartz said that the newest addition to the Crowne Plaza is a part of his dream to turn a “cocoon into a butterfly”.
He said the convention centre will position the Hunter Valley as one of the key regional event destinations, competing with all major cities across Australia and New Zealand.
“This is the big ticket item,” he said, adding that it will bring “fabulous, fabulous opportunities.”
“While some traditional mining and manufacturing industries are in declining, tourism has enormous potential to grow income for local operators and create jobs,” Dr. Schwartz said.
He also highlighted the need for improved infrastructure in this growing area.
“One of the key issues holding the region back is infrastructure. Cessnock Airport needs an urgent upgrade if we are to attract more high-yield groups, international tourists and corporate travellers,” Dr. Schwartz said.
He asked the crowd how many travelled by aircraft to get to the launch, to which he received no response; he then asked how many would have liked to travel by aircraft, which received a much stronger reply.
“The airport should be upgraded to make it capable of handling commercial aircraft. This could open up a whole new access point for the Hunter Valley and maximise the potential of the region’s attractions,” he said.
Dr. Schwartz praised the Premier and the NSW Government for their announcement of a $123 million increase in tourism expenditure, including $40 million extra for regional tourism, over the next four years.
“We look forward to hearing more about the regional tourism strategy as many areas in regional NSW have been suffering through economic downturn, and tourism offers a cost-effective, sustainable solution for business and economic growth,” he said.
The Premier also announced yesterday that a re-elected Baird Government will introduce a $273 million investment to build growth roads and fix congestion ‘pinch points’ across the Hunter region.
“This $273 million package to fix Hunter roads will reduce travel times, improve safety and create valuable local jobs during construction,” he said.
Seven projects were brought forward as the first in the package which includes roads at the Newcastle University, Highfields, Broadmeadow, Mayfield, Whittingham, Rutherford and Warners Bay/Newcastle.
However, Mr. Baird said these investments in roads and infrastructure in the Hunter will go well beyond just Newcastle, and are well overdue.
“For a long time the community has looked and waited for these changes to come,” he said.
Mr. Baird said the NSW Government is committed to providing the necessary infrastructure to deliver for future growth.
“The $273 million investment builds on the record infrastructure investment the NSW Government is already undertaking in the Hunter – taking the total contribution to Hunter infrastructure to more than $1 billion.”
