V’landys yet to receive ‘invite’ to appear at Rosehill inquiry
ATC chair McGauran tables submission in favour of selling Sydney racecourse
Under attack Racing NSW chief executive Peter V’landys, whose long tenure of the state’s regulatory body was questioned at an explosive Upper House parliamentary inquiry on Monday, has revealed he has not yet been asked to front the committee.
In an extraordinary opening session examining the potential $5 billion sale and redevelopment of Rosehill racecourse, the bipartisan Select Committee applied the blowtorch on V’landys and Racing NSW’s governance of the thoroughbred industry when questioning the nine witnesses who appeared on day one of the hearings.
Among those witnesses were Hall Of Fame trainer Gai Waterhouse and fellow handler John O’Shea, both ardent objectors to the sale of Rosehill, Thoroughbred Breeders NSW president Hamish Esplin and Australian Turf Club (ATC) life member and former Australian Jockey Club chairman David Hall.
The questioning of V’landys’ almost 20-year term as chief executive of the statutory body was led by Animal Justice Party MP Emma Hurst while maverick independent MP Mark Latham alleged that Racing NSW had withdrawn $50,000 in funding for the NSW Racehorse Owners Association.
Speaking under parliamentary privilege, O’Shea said he had received phone calls from people telling him it wasn’t in his best interests to appear before the Select Committee and that other racing figures had received similar threats.
Asked by ANZ Bloodstock News on Tuesday to respond to the allegations aired at Monday’s hearing and whether he would attend either of the scheduled hearing days on August 9 or September 12, V’landys said: “At this point I have not been invited [and I would] prefer not to comment at this stage.”
Premier trainer Chris Waller did not appear as a witness on Monday, but he has provided a written submission to the inquiry calling for Rosehill to be retained as a racing precinct.
“I do not think giving up the Rosehill racecourse for housing is the right way to go when you consider the great loss this would be to the entertainment and life of so many who live in Western Sydney,” Waller wrote.
“Once Rosehill is gone Western Sydney has lost one of its greatest community attractions. To suggest it can be replaced or another satisfactory [site] can be found to build a racetrack is fanciful.
“Although I am totally in favour of the retention of Rosehill, I am open to suggestions of alternative proposals such as the selling off of part of the Rosehill precinct for housing, areas such as not regularly used car parks, and also for Rosehill to be used by the community during non-racing and training hours.”
Matthew McGrath, the immediate past chair of the ATC, also made a submission to the committee indicating his opposition to the plan to sell Rosehill, believing there are viable alternatives to increasing housing in Sydney and generate revenue for the club.
Despite the current wagering and general economic downturn, McGrath countered that the ATC was able to navigate through Covid when revenues were effectively zero.
He said that the ATC could sell sites at Canterbury, land at the circus site on James Ruse Drive and, thirdly, the Rosehill Bowling Club. The three parcels of land could generate $250 million, he said.
“These three solid and simple opportunities present to the State [Government] the much needed land for housing and require a sign-off to get things moving,” McGrath wrote on July 15.
“The need to sell Rosehill Gardens on the above becomes a redundant point. A possible $5 billion windfall is irrelevant given the above and also the spend of those monies to build another racecourse when there is a world class one in Rosehill already functioning.”
As was raised during Monday’s hearings by some witnesses, McGrath also harbours concerns about where the money would go if Rosehill is sold.
He wrote: “The Australian Turf Club must retain any funds, and spend those on the betterment of the spaces they own to ensure continued investment in Welfare for both Human and Horse, and industry growth to support employment and social enjoyment across metropolitan Sydney and importantly in the West.”
Incumbent ATC chair Peter McGauran, in the club’s submission tabled on Monday, reiterated what he’d stated publicly at the time of the announcement of the proposal last year, claiming the organisation would have “failed in its fiduciary obligations if it did not investigate and continue to assess the proposed sale of Rosehill Gardens for the benefit of its members and the racing industry”.
“The ATC, as with surrounding landowners, has sought rezoning of Camellia/Rosehill Gardens coupled with a Metro station since 2015,” McGauran wrote.
“After several years of meetings and discussions with various Government and property stakeholders, it was clear that only increased housing density would make a Metro station a feasible option.
“Analysis has clearly established that funds generated from a rezoned racecourse with a Metro Station would secure the financial future of the ATC into the next century.”
The NSW Jockeys’ Association did not take a position on the sale of Rosehill in its submission.
“Our focus and priority is maintaining the world’s best racing in Sydney, which encompasses having, as an absolute minimum, two excellent racetracks that can hold regular Saturday racing on [the] best racing surfaces,” NSW Jockeys Association chief executive Tony Crisafi wrote.
“The Australian Turf Club assures us that either an upgraded Warwick Farm, or a new track at an alternative site such as Homebush, will fill the void left by Rosehill.
“The funds generated, should the Rosehill sale proceed, will provide the ATC with resources to upgrade or build a second Sydney racetrack to complement Randwick.”
NSW Premier Chris Minns told radio station 2GB on Tuesday that Sydney needed “more affordable housing” and redeveloping Rosehill was a way of delivering that to the city’s residents.
However, Minns said any decision on selling Rosehill should rest with the members of the ATC.
“I’ve got to make the point, it’s up to members of the ATC. It’s not up to the NSW Government,” he told the station. “They’re going to have to make the decision.”