Bunbury Speedway: Mayor Jaysen Miguel labels multimillion-dollar speedway proposal snub ‘disappointing’

The breakdown of a multimillion-dollar proposal to redevelop the Bunbury Speedway has been left Mayor Jaysen Miguel “disappointed”. Bunbury City Council resolved to “extend an olive branch” and invite the Bunbury Car Club, the current leaseholders at the site, and DirtCar Australia to discuss the proposal. But the car club moved swiftly on Wednesday to quash any hopes of the state-of-the-art facelift going ahead, confirming it had no interest in entering into any discussions with the proponents. Mr Miguel said the council had done everything in its power to bring the two groups together to make best use of the huge community asset at the track. “The City’s involvement was always about making Bunbury better as we continue to strive to be a City that is welcoming and full of opportunities,” he said. “If an agreement can’t be reached between the two clubs it would be disappointing, however we believe we did everything we could to provide an opportunity for the clubs to work together. “We thank both clubs for their ongoing contributions to Bunbury and of course remain open to working with them on future opportunities.” Mr Miguel had previously said he would “love to see what could happen out there” at the speedway. The DirtCar Australia proposal — which was revealed in the South Western Times in February — would have seen adjustments made to the track and its safety fences, an overhaul of the catering and bar services and upgrades made to the main grandstands. The group hoped to give the precinct year-round usage and recapture headline events, including bringing concerts to the venue. But in a statement to the Times, the BCC said its members “can now feel secure and concentrate on running the exciting events the public wish to see”. A last-minute amendment moved by Deputy Mayor Tresslyn Smith meant the matter could not come back to the council, should either party back down from discussions.