The organisers of a major music festival on the Sunshine Coast say the move to a new venue will allow it to accommodate more people and improve the experience for patrons.
It was revealed last week that Groovin the Moo would return to the Coast on Sunday, May 5, making the shift to Sunshine Coast Stadium and the surrounding Kawana Sports Precinct.
GTM organisers and Sunshine Coast Council have told Sunshine Coast News that the festival will not be held on the main stadium field but surrounding fields.
The change of venue will enable the festival to host 35,000 people, an increase of 10,000 people from its Sunshine Coast debut last year, which took place at the Kawana Sports Western Precinct at Birtinya on Sunday, April 30.
But not everyone was applauding afterwards, with sporting clubs at the Western Precinct left reeling by the muddy mess that was made of the once-grassy fields.
A spokesperson said GTM organisers made the decision to shift the festival so it could offer a better experience.
“We proposed the new space and have worked closely with the stadium teams and all other stakeholders including police, roads, ambulance and local clubs for the site layout,” they said.
“The venue is listed as Sunshine Coast Stadium precinct but whilst we are using the stadium for some of our operational facilities, our event site will be located on the fields adjacent to the stadium.
“This will give us more space and better access for stages, patrons, amenities and community activations.”
Sunshine Coast Council Division 3 Councillor Peter Cox said a management plan to ensure the event runs smoothly was “well advanced”.
“Venue selection is at the discretion of the promoter. Council understands the promoter considered a number of venues across the region,” he said.
“The Kawana Sports Precinct is designated to cater for sport, events and entertainment for the enjoyment and benefit of the community.
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“In 2023, due to prior bookings and alternative user group activity, the Sunshine Coast Stadium was not available for the date/s requested by the promoter. The Western Fields provided a logical solution to host this positive event opportunity and scale of event within the wider Kawana Sports Precinct.
“After 24,500 fans attended the event in 2023, we were excited to offer the stadium precinct for the 2024 event and continue to accommodate this major music event within the region. The festival will not be held on the stadium field but surrounding fields.
“It was important to retain this event allowing access to our community to a major music festival whilst also providing a welcome economic boost to the region. These types of festivals are integral to our region’s social and economic prosperity.
“In addition to the numerous attendees who travel and stay on the Coast to attend the festival, more than 1000 people were employed to deliver the one-day event. It is estimated that the event provides a $5 million economic boost to the region.
“Accommodation houses and hospitality venues were near capacity, and it is expected the 2024 event will deliver a similar, or better, result for the region with up to 35,000 attendees anticipated.
“Planning is well underway to provide an amazing experience for locals and thousands of visitors to the region.
“A full management plan is well advanced. Council and the promoter are working with a large group of stakeholders including Queensland Police Service, the Department of Transport and Main Roads and local contractors to ensure that the transport and patron movement is as seamless as possible for an event of this scale. This includes increased buses, taxis, pick-up and drop-off areas for festival-goers.
“There are a number of initiatives being used to overlay the required field protection across the 2024 site. One example is field protection mats for high foot traffic and congregation areas. These are specific breathable mats that protect the turf.”
Cr Cox said council had negotiated with sports clubs that use the stadium precinct and had offered alternative arrangements.
“The Sunshine Coast Falcons are not impacted by this event. Neither their training field nor game field will be used for this year’s festival,” he said.
“Sunshine Coast Council has had regular communications with our precinct clubs and they have been provided alternative training fields for the event period.”
The Falcons are scheduled to play the Townsville Blackhawks at the stadium on April 20 but then have a combination of away games and byes until they host the Tweed Seagulls on May 25.
One of the clubs based at the stadium is the Kawana Dolphins rugby league team.
Sunshine Coast Gympie Rugby League president Jodi Price said her organisation had been given enough notice to make amendments to the Dolphins’ draw to avoid any clashes with the festival.
“We’ve spoken to them (council) about it and have got a plan in place for any relocation of training nights or anything necessary for that two weeks,” she said.
“We’ve had great assurances that it will only be a two-week period and that everything will be good to go after that.
“We do a lot of work with the stadium so we’ve been watching this quite closely.
“Because we’ve been given so much notice we’ve been able to work our draw out around that. They just won’t have their home games in that time and at those venues, we’ll make their homes games another time.
“We can work in pretty easily. There’s always a lots of events in that stadium precinct so we get given a list of block-out dates at the beginning of the year.”
The move to the stadium precinct was also welcomed by Kawana FC, which is based at the Western Precinct, where GTM was held last year.
“We’re pretty happy with the decision that’s been made to move the festival from a location that it never should have been allowed to be in to begin with,” secretary Abby Maynard said.
Cr Cox said users of the Western Precinct were continuing to benefit from upgrades to that facility.
“While there were required relocations for clubs after the 2023 event, all club-scheduled fixtures were able to be played at the Western field precinct,” he said.
“Last year, the Western Precinct received significant drainage upgrades undertaken in the lead-up to the festival that are providing continued benefits to those fields. NBN access was also installed by the promoter.”
Tickets for GTM 2023 went on sale at noon on February 7 and by February 12 organisers reported a sell-out, with about 25,000 tickets sold.
The spokesperson said the feedback for last year’s event had been “very positive”.
“An event like Groovin the Moo injects significant funds into the local economy, supporting the hospitality industry and local businesses,” they said.
“The event also supports local artists and community groups, offering opportunities to be involved in the festival in the lead-up to and on event day.”
Organisers have said the line-up for the 2024 festival will be revealed “very soon”.
Last year’s event featured alt-j (UK), Australian Idol judge Amy Shark, Ball Park Music, Fatboy Slim (UK), Coast favourites The Chats, Eliza Rose (UK) and Ocean Alley.
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