Economic sponsorships boost local economy
02 Aug 2017
A 12-day music festival with a classical focus, a network of manufacturers synched in with Newcastle's smart city ambitions and a promising junior theatre project have all received support from Newcastle City Council's annual grants program.
Council's 2017 Economic Development Sponsorship Program (EDSP) has allocated $100,000 to help 10 organisations stage exciting events or projects that will help boost the Hunter's economy.
"I would like to congratulate all recipients of our economic development sponsorships for submitting outstanding applications," Council's Interim CEO, Jeremy Bath, said.
"The program aims to boost the local economy by backing a broad range of projects, from a local fashion magazine with goals of running a fashion festival and a women-in-business mentoring program to local business awards and a contemporary arts space.
"Together with our economic development sponsorships and community assistance and recreationla facilities grants, this year Council is providing funding to projects and events for some 205,000 people and generating an expected economic benefit in excess of $14.2 million."
Newcastle Music Festival organisers have received $10,000 from the EDSP for the second instalment of an event they hope to grow into a major cultural attraction.
Showcasing guest artists alongside local choirs and instrumental groups, the Newcastle Music Festival will host 19 events over 12 days from 9-20 August.
"Our guest artists include internationally-acclaimed soprano Hyeseoung Kwon, who has made Madame Butterfly her own in performances for Opera Australia," Festival Secretary Ross Fiddes said.
"Award-winning violinist Anna da Silva Chen, and British-based contralto Sylvia Clarke will also be here.
"We will welcome back the wonderful mezzo-soprano Deborah Humble, whose opening concert in the 2016 Festival received a standing ovation, and are excited to present for the first time John Paul Young, one of Australia’s best-loved singers."
Under another EDSP grant, Council will take up a $15,000 gold membership of HunterNet, a network of manufacturers that supports Newcastle's smart city strategy and works to promote advanced manufacturing.
"HunterNet is highly active in promoting Newcastle and the Hunter as a place to do business and invest in," CEO Tony Cade said.
"We promote local businesses to other regions through trade shows and forums and promote the area as a centre of excellence for engineering and manufacturing. Of particular importance are the networks we have established internationally, in particular in the growing economies of China, Korea and Vietnam."
OzTheatrics' Junior Theatre Celebration Australia (JTCOz), which reprises a successful US model of developing young talent, has also received $10,000.
Students and teachers from all over Australia will converge on Newcastle to perform, complete workshops and celebrate all things musical theatre from October 23-28 after a highly successful inaugural event last year.
Including a young Broadway Junior Pilot Program facilitated by a professional team visiting from New York, this year's event is expected to generate demand for 500 hotel beds before expanding to 1,000 by 2019.
"Our event will spotlight Newcastle as the Australian capital for musical theatre education and development by producing a one-of-a-kind major national event," Director and Event Coordinator Daniel Stoddart said.
Other recipients of Economic Development Grants include:
| Project name | Amount | Project Outline | |
| 1 | Hunter Local Business Awards | $2,000 | The Hunter Local Business Awards is a recognition program highlighting outstanding local businesses. The presentation evening marks the culmination of the program and includes the presentation of awards to category winners. |
| 2 | Facon Magazine and Creative Development Initiative | $10,000 | Façon Magazine and Creative Development Initiative is stage three of the initial project “Styling by Lara Lupish”. To date it has produced three hard copy fashion magazines and is integral to the future planning of a 2018 Fashion Festival for Newcastle. Website development will direct users to the fashion and creative economy of Newcastle. |
| 3 | 2017 Real Film Festival (RFF) | $10,000 | The RFF is an annual three-day festival designed to foster and showcase the art of storytelling real events through film. It will include 12 workshops, discussion sessions, three short film competitions and multiple screenings. Supported by a national marketing campaign encouraging visitation to Newcastle and film start-ups in the city. |
| 4 | Strategic Development Plan | $10,000 | Development of a two-year strategic plan to help attract new activities and events to the Throsby Basin. The plan will help the Throsby Basin Business Chamber identify local business opportunities while establishing a clear framework for future organisational improvements. |
| 5 | Women in Business Mentoring Program 2018 | $15,000 | Provides support for the Business Centre's specific program to enable business /economic growth through small and medium- sized business support programs. |
| 6 | The Ten Year Creative Project | $10,000 | The project will take place in the Newcastle CBD and include a Craft exposure workshop series at City Hall, a creative intern stallholder sponsorship for a refugee or recent immigrant at The Olive Tree Market, and The Next Generation project at City Hall. |
| 7 | The Lock-Up Program | $8,000 | The project sponsors the activities of The Lock Up, a multi-disciplinary contemporary arts space and inner-city hub for creative thinking and doing in a unique historic setting. The project will allow TLU to increase its capacity to market and promote activities through a variety of local, national and international platforms. |
