Cover image courtesy of Rosehill Gardens Racecourse
What do we now know about how the proposed sale of Rosehill came about?
A parliamentary order recently made previously undisclosed documents available, so we now know that the following timeline took place:
October 25, 2023: ATC officials met with NSW Planning Department Officials, where it was outlined by the ATC that “racing would continue” at Rosehill.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported that documents showed the ATC had engaged with consultants to prepare plans that would have around 3,000 homes built surrounding the Rosehill track.
Rosehill Racecourse | Image courtesy of Rosehill Gardens Racecourse
The ATC informed the department that Rosehill and Randwick remained the club’s “premier race venues” and “there is definitely no plan to relocate” and “racing would continue” at Rosehill even if the surrounding development went ahead.
The Herald went on to report that the very same presentation included two options for Canterbury Racecourse; one to create 900 new homes by moving the existing carpark and the second to relocate the course and create space for 4000 new homes.
October 30, 2023: Premier Chris Minns then met with ATC Head of Memberships and Corporate Affairs Steve McMahon.
Chris Minns
Minns had previously stated this was the first time he had heard of the Rosehill redevelopment proposal.
November 8, 2023: The ATC formally lodged its proposal with the government.
The Herald reported that emails between the NSW Cabinet Office show that the proposal had already been given a code name – Project Wattle – before the meeting had taken place.
November 15, 2023: The government sent the ATC a memorandum of understanding.
November 17, 2023: Racing NSW’s Chairman at the time, Russell Balding, and current CEO, Peter V’Landys met with the NSW Government.
Russell Balding, former Racing NSW Chair
In this conversation the idea of redeveloping Horsley Park as a training venue was discussed, as was ATC governance reform that would include restructuring the ATC Board and ensuring revenue derived from the sale would go to the entire NSW racing industry – not just the ATC. The sale funds would likely be managed by Racing NSW.
Racing NSW also requested that Kembla Grange racecourse be “transferred under freehold or long-term lease to Racing NSW” as an “industry asset”.
December 7, 2023: The ATC hold a press conference with the NSW Government announcing the “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to develop Rosehill Racecourse.
Peter V’Landys | Image courtesy of Racing NSW
So, what’s the political concern with this timeline?
Aside from the optics of poor transparency by the ATC, Racing NSW and the NSW Government, there are quite stringent guidelines that an ‘unsolicited proposal’ must follow. The primary guideline being that, as the name suggests, it must be unsolicited.
NSW State Opposition housing spokesperson Scott Farlow suggested to the Herald the timeline of events raised questions under the state’s unsolicited proposals guidelines.
“Under the unsolicited proposal process, it is imperative the government remains impartial in the process, but instead the premier called the proposal a ‘once in a generation opportunity’ and has been its biggest proponent ever since,” Farlow said.
Scott Farlow
The Unsolicited Proposals process, detailed on the NSW Government's website, lays out stringent criteria to safeguard fairness and integrity. A pivotal requirement is the “maintaining impartiality” clause, ensuring “fair and impartial treatment will be a feature of each stage of the assessment process.” This directive aims to ensure proposals are assessed on their own merits, devoid of any undue influence or predisposition, thereby upholding the decision-making process' integrity and serving the public's best interest.
However, the approach to Rosehill Gardens' redevelopment sparked debate over whether these principles are being adhered to.
Minns has insisted the right process has been followed as guidelines allow the government to engage with a stakeholder before a formal proposal is lodged.
When will the ATC Member vote take place? Or, rather, will an ATC Member vote take place?
ATC Chairman Peter McGauran told a members’ forum at Randwick earlier this year that the decision to sell Rosehill Racecourse would remain with the members, after the question was directly asked by respected owner Frank Cook.
“There could be no decision made legally,” said McGauran. “Because the disposal of core assets of the ATC is governed by the Registered Clubs Act, which requires a vote of members, a majority vote above 50 per cent.
“I can say with certainty, the board can’t sell. So you may rest assured on that basis under the Act, and nor would we attempt to. So under the Act, only members can sell core land. The board can sell non-core land, such as the car park. The core land is defined as anything to do with training or racing.”
Peter McGauran | Image courtesy of The Australian Turf Club
He reiterated this stance to the Herald:
“The fiduciary and duty-of-care obligations of the ATC directors meant we could not make the decision to reject a $5 billion opportunity by ourselves,” he said. “It is a decision that had to be referred to members.”
Minns’ has also been widely quoted in the media as stating:
“That decision will have to be decided by members of the ATC, not the NSW government.”
But…
It now appears that Members may have been fed false confidence about the certainty of their rights being upheld, as there are methods that could be adopted to bypass a vote.
Independent MP Mark Latham asked questions around the requirement for ATC members to approve the proposal, following the news that the due diligence for the sale of Rosehill was being conducted by Racing NSW, rather than the ATC.
Mark Latham
Latham asked:
“Will you insist that this vote is taken, rather than the Australian Turf Club handing over the project to Racing NSW, through the Trustee and Racing NSW exercising its power under the NSW Thoroughbred Racing Act to sell Rosehill without reference to the Australian Turf Club Membership?”
A written reply from Upper House Leader Penny Sharpe on behalf of the Premier was tabled:
“The Australian Turf Club - as the landowner of Rosehill Racecourse - will make its own decisions related to the consultations it needs to undertake with its membership", the response read.
Penny Sharpe
What is next? When will ATC Members be consulted again?
On April 8, McGauran sent an email to all ATC Members stating next steps as the NSW Government forms an Assessment Panel which may request additional information from the ATC. Then if this first stage is approved by the NSW Government, the next step is the formation of a ‘’Detailed proposal’’.
“This step will take some time,” McGauran wrote. “During which we will undertake Due Diligence involving a range of financial and planning experts, members and racing stakeholders. Racing NSW will support the cost of the Due Diligence and will undertake their own analysis.”
Under the unsolicited proposals process, all proposals submitted are kept confidential at Stage 1 of the assessment process.
If the proposal enters Stage 2, information should be made publicly available. The NSW Government website states: “Transparency refers to the preparedness to open a project and its processes to scrutiny, debate and possible criticism. This also involves providing reasons for all decisions taken and the provision of appropriate information to relevant stakeholders.”
To enter Stage 2, the ATC will need to sign a ‘Participation Agreement’ with the NSW Government, which guarantees a ‘commitment to following an open book approach to discussions’ and a ‘prohibition on lobbying’.
“To enter Stage 2, the ATC will need to sign a ‘Participation Agreement’ with the NSW Government, which guarantees a ‘commitment to following an open book approach to discussions’ and a ‘prohibition on lobbying’.”
However, disclosure to members is still not guaranteed.
As the NSW Government website states, “In some cases, Proponents may request that proposals are not listed, if this would pose significant risks to commercial negotiations or IP. The Government considers each request and may agree not to disclose a proposal.”
Whilst many unknowns remain up in the air as ATC Members wait to see what will unfold next, there is an uneasiness growing - will member rights be respected at all?
Or, as voiced by Latham will “Racing NSW exercise its power under the NSW Thoroughbred Racing Act to sell Rosehill without reference to the Australian Turf Club Membership”?
The Save Rosehill group has been formed by concerned members to ensure members rights are preserved and encourages all members to participate by voting when asked.
