$107m Hunter tourism hub

A NEW purpose-built outdoor amphitheatre and tourism precinct is set to open in the NSW city of Newcastle in 2023 after investment firm Winarch Capital purchased one of the Hunter Valley wine region’s most premium development sites.

The firm’s newly-founded Cedar Mill Group plans to spend $107 million to construct the major tourism hub, which will include a 100-bed hotel, wine museum, vineyard club and 22,000 person concert venue.

When completed, the new Pokolbin property located on the corner of Broke and McDonalds Roads and situated alongside the Hope Estate winery will aim to attract highend travellers to the area by creating a raft of surrounding premium experiences, such as boutique dining options inspired by local agricultural heritage, winemaking, distilling and craft beer brewing.

The slated project is anticipated to bring 68,045 additional visitors to the region and inject an extra $33 million a year into the local economy, according to modelling conducted by REMPLAN.

Conference and events organisers will also be catered for, with venues planned to provide space for large-scale functions.

“This is...an exciting step towards our plans to have outdoor venues coupled with exciting tourism concepts in the best locations in Australia and New Zealand,” Cedar Mill Group GM Kyle McKendry enthused.