ORAN PARK is it's days numbered

[TSR]

With housing devolpment closing in on Oran Park s it's days numbered. I noticed that the RTA are putting in special traffic condtion for race day.
I hope this is not cause ORAN is a brillant track, but the question has to be asked.:confused: :confused:

[pete55]

I heard about this but can't remember when it was mentioned that the guarantee of motorsport being held there was due to run out. I think it was the end of 2005 but not sure.

[Joe5619]

It is still in the middle of nowhere to me!!!!

[GTRMagic]

It needs work still on its pitlane.... this weekend, the Kmart cars are in separate, single pit garages, with a gap to the pitlane in between them....

I left the circuit in good time today... its not so far from me, maybe 45 minutes...

... but there are enormous housing developments in the surrounding area... eventually it shall get pinged for noise, like Darlington Park.

Interestingly, one wag suggested that the pit complex was designed to be relocated, and that the current proprietor was interested in building a new race circuit in Sydney....

[Joe5619]

why is it EC does not have a problem???? They are WAY WAY WAY closer to Sydney & houses???

[GTRMagic]

There is a bloody great express way near Eastern Creek, which makes more noise than a race track ever could

Eastern Creek serves a useful purpose... the end of it remains a garbage dump, and under the 30 year building rule, it has to sit and stew for that long till houses or whatever you want can be built on it....

Oran Park will be swamped with noise issues well before Eastern Creek....

[Grimace]

Yesterday i saw ,just past the dogleg, what looked like sound equipment and operators, funny thing was the V8s really were very quiet and i was right on the fence only a few metres back from the track,

AND where they were with their equipment a howling wind was blowing down the main straight(and as such across the dogleg) AWAY from the microphones which made the sound even quieter! LOL The cars may be noisier on other parts of the circuit --but not there! --the loudest noise is the front spoilers scraping as they bottom out under braking.

[TSR]

Today the histroics were more louder that the v8supertaxi. And yes noise will be ORAN big concern within the next 5years coming from a sport were noise is killing us.

[the man]

I heard that they weren't signing any contracts past 2006

[Onlooker]

Don't even worry about housing ,pitlane or any other time wasting conversation,TC said on the Panelbeaters 2 rounds for the 3 eastern states and one each for the others,Bathurst,EC and Oran Park, you could drop out of high school at year 9 and figure that one out.
EC is a cert for sure, they are even having athe moto cross there on the saturday night this year,it will saty, so Bathurst V oran Park ,eny,miny,moe

[marcus]

I think OP is an excellent track , I hope it stays for many years , Ive never been there but it looks like a heck of a lotta fun round there

[f1manoz]

Oran Park is a great little circuit, but it could certainly do with some development.

[Also a Believer]

The problem is it is very 1 lane.

[Joe5619]

Originally posted by GTRMagic
There is a bloody great express way near Eastern Creek, which makes more noise than a race track ever could

Eastern Creek serves a useful purpose... the end of it remains a garbage dump, and under the 30 year building rule, it has to sit and stew for that long till houses or whatever you want can be built on it....

Oran Park will be swamped with noise issues well before Eastern Creek....

None of that stop them closing 'Wonderland' to build office buildings!!!! And the last time I was on the roller-cooster at Wonderland I was looking straight down the main staright of EC!!

[worried]

Strong stories have now been around for over 2 years that NO long term advertising or other contracts have been signed at OP that go beyond December 2005.

Word is also very very strong at present that Tony Peritch, owner of Oran Park, has been looking for another site to build a new venue to replace OP. The fact that the pit lane building have been built as 'demountables' and can be moved elsewhere also adds to the factual nature of this last piece of information.

Eastern Creek doesn't suffer the same local environmental problems as Oran Park in that it has been built in a purpose zoned area - Oran Park was built many many years ago when no thought was given to protecting the surrounding areas with industrial or even straight rural zoning classifications which would have prevented the continual creepage of housing towards the track. Again - ECk is basically protected from this (possibly the biggest plus for the Creek are the adjacent power lines given the arguments over the past 15 to 20 years about electro-magnetic radiation and the possible cause and effect they have on childhood cancers and the like).

I understand that the Peritch family, now that Tony has gotten over his health scare of last year, are actively looking for a replacement site - they have the financial backing to relocate and Oran Park, if subdivided, would bring in a hell of a lot more than Amaroo Park - so this would ease the cost burden of relocating.

[Mark Webber]

Harrington Park has been zoned to Oran Park Rd and Land will be sold late 06 for building in 07

Clearing has all ready begun

[mountainstar]

It's always sad to see a track go and get turned into house lots, but if a better track was built in the Sydney area I would be for it.

And then in 50 years they can build houses on that too.

[Joe5619]

As long as they do a better job than with EC (& QLD for that matter)!!! Who every thought of putting the pits in the middle of EC & block any good view for the fans is complete d*&@head!!! And the person that did QLD, my god they must live a boring life as it showed in the track design!!

[the man]

I would agree that track design has gone down hill in recent years, but how long before there are no more tracks in nsw to race at?

[275 GTB-4]

Originally posted by worried
I understand that the Peritch family, now that Tony has gotten over his health scare of last year, are actively looking for a replacement site - they have the financial backing to relocate and Oran Park, if subdivided, would bring in a hell of a lot more than Amaroo Park - so this would ease the cost burden of relocating.

Oran is reasonably well located. Where would be the most likley replacement site??

Badgery's Creek?

[FatBoy]

but if a better track was built in the Sydney area I would be for it.

If you have actually raced there i'd say you would agree that it would be hard to build a "better" track...

Oran Park has it all, by far the most enjoyable NSW track to race on, and it's sad that next year will be the last year i race there if the rumours are true...

Cheers,
Paul...

[Micklegend]

They should put the dollars into extending Wakefield.....clearly a good cuircuit with great spectator viewing from the hill.
And in no danger of being built out by houses!

[GROUPA]

IMO they should build something with a mixture of everything...long striaghts, fast sweepers, undulations etc....just dont build something boring like QLD Raceway.

Also try and make it multi purpose for bikes & cars along with driver training skid pan.

Seems Sandown will go the way of Ammaro and other tracks in time...we down in Melbourne will have the same problem as NSW....driver to Winton or PI....at leat NSW will have a track left in the Metro area....and please dont count Albert Park

[worried]

And if everyone in CAMS and elsewhere would cut out the BS and personal differences they have - you would have Calder as well.

[Seton Fanatic]

My mail was that the so-called Bringelly 'mini-city' with a rail line and all the facilities that Fairfield (Which is declining by the day, despite a half-baked attempt to build high-rises that nobody will invest in) and Liverpool can only dream of has still not been approved after it seemed certain that it would late last year.

As for Eastern Creek, I'm probably best qualified to comment on noise levels given that I live a suburb south of the track. The Historic Cars, Motorcycles and Drag racers make a lot of noise which is perfectly audible from where I live. However, I have never heard a V8Supercar from home, which has always surprised me. I put it down to the Government's policy on noise. The greatest threat to Eastern Creek's continued operation is fire. There have been two fires in the recent past within a kilometre of the track. With a drought that never seems to stop, that is quite possible. There will definitely be no Badgery's Creek track. If they rejected an airport due to environment concerns, not much chance of a racetrack, given that that is being encroached too by residential blocks within 5 km of the area.