Future side projects at Mount Panorama continue to be in the spotlight, with the latest meeting of the Bathurst Regional Council noting the possibility of a motorsport-themed technology park to be built alongside Conrod Straight.

Mayor Jess Jennings, a noted revhead, included the concept of a motorsport-themed tech park within the Mayoral Minutes of the July 17^th Ordinary Council Meeting.

The Motion read that the Council:

a) Investigate initiating and development of motorsport manufacturing in the area marked ‘Technology Park’ on Council owned land between Conrod Straight and College Road, excluding existing camping.

b) Investigate private and public options for investment, including the ‘Future Made in Australia’ program of the Australian Government.

c) Report back to Council with options for consideration.

The Minute noted that the initiative would support Mount Panorama Wahluu as a premier motorsport and event precinct.

Bathurst media has subsequently noted that the precinct has the potential to attract teams and other allied businesses to the area.

Elsewhere in the meeting, considerable attention was given to the prospective Bathurst Go Kart Club track development application, which is slated for broadly similar land to the tech park, with a subject site between Conrod Straight and College Road.

Following an independent report into the application, the discussion revolved around funding, noise, pollution and traffic, with affected property owners vocal in denouncing the project.

To date, the Council has been working for four years on the current kart track issue, with the club noted as being a significant loser from the protracted application process.

The minutes also note that there has been a level of misinformation surrounding the project circulated to date.

Full minutes of the meeting can be found here.

In May, we covered the details surrounding the go-kart track project in depth, with an emphasis on the financials of the build.

The latest Council minutes note that the pending development application for the project has a value of $4,729,940.

Earlier plans to build the kart track at McPhillamy Park were mired in controversy before ultimately being scrapped.

Last week, our story covering 28 planned circuits for Australia noted the lack of progress on the second Bathurst Circuit project.

Elsewhere, little has been publicly noted regarding the prospective lineup of events at Mount Panorama in 2025 and beyond.

This year, the venue is being uniquely used for a record six events, up from the typical five as dictated by legislation.

The unique Bathurst 12 Hour/Supercars doubleheader at the start of the season saw the two events classified as one, with that pair subsequently followed by the Bathurst 6 Hour at Easter.

Next up on the Mount Panorama schedule are the Repco Bathurst 1000, Challenge Bathurst, and the final running of the Supercheap Auto Bathurst Invitational.

While the season-opening twin meetings won’t be repeated in 2025, a prospective replacement fixture for the International has yet to be named.