Tapawera motorsport park to get consent - Fairfax NZ News Article

A planned regional motorsport park near Tapawera is set to get the go-ahead.

The venture, now known as the NZ Central Motorsports and Adventure Park, was granted earthworks and initial infrastructure consents mid-2012 but that was appealed by three neighbouring landowners and Nelson Forests.

The Tasman District Council notes the appeal matters have been resolved among the parties and a consent order is expected to be issued shortly from the Environment Court.

Adcock Properties owner Garry Adcock has been the driver of the $26 million project to be built in stages.

The idea is to offer a place for motorsports such as drag racing, motocross, sealed and off-road track racing, driver training and mountain biking as well as adventure sports such as the luge.

The independent commissioners declined consents for a proposed helipad, airstrip and recreational lake at the site.

The 203-hectare site at Stanley Brook is 62 kilometres from central Nelson located off the end of Olivers Rd.

Mr Adcock said his vision for the park was along the lines of Saxton Field, which was an excellent model of athletics and other sports sharing a communal facility.

He has spoken with MPs Nick Smith and Damien O'Connor about the motorsport park, and is in the process of talking with the councils about long term plans.

He said he had a positive response in talking with the Nelson City Council and had asked to talk with the Tasman District Council.

He said he wanted to get input from the councils, then would go to community groups and the various users.

His role would be to form an entity to run and manage the project, with a board of eight or nine from user groups to progress it.

Drag racing, which uses the Motueka airport, has a long term plan looking to move to the motorsport park.

Nelson Drag Racing Association spokesman Wayne Stirling said it was still at the early stages and it needed to see the detail and conditions of the motorsport park.

"We're not the only group interested in the site, how we fit in with other groups interested in going there - there are a lot of issues to go through."

The association still had five years left on a 10-year resource consent for using the airport.

Mr Adcock said he did not expect much would change in the next year or two, although some off-roading could go ahead sooner than that.

He has spent three years on the project and said it would be good to finally see the consent.

Mr Adcock hopes supporters will join the NZ Central Motorsport and Adventure Park Supporters Club to help progress the park, which was aimed at the top of the South region as well as the lower North Island.

The funding would need to be driven by the user organisations and there might be some input from private investors, he said.

Issues that had been settled during the appeal process included a fire safety plan, how the park would work in with forestry operations and monitoring aquifers.