COUNCIL has waived thousands of dollars worth of fees in a bid to ensure more major sporting events are held in Tamworth.
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Organisers of the National Primary Games (NPG) and the June Long Weekend Baseball Carnival have been relieved of a combined $6695.84 worth of charges.
The reports to councilllors asked to consider “the substantial benefit to the community and the opportunity to showcase Tamworth’s high quality sporting facilities” as key reason for discounting fees on the events.
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In 2017, the NPG attracted 1630 participants and growth was anticipated by council at this year’s event.
This came despite the Northern Inland Academy of Sport’s (NIAS) announcement the number of codes at the carnival would be cut from 12 in 2017 down to five this year.
NIAS widened the age groups to accept athletes from under-8 to under-14 levels at the event, which it said would increase the amount of squads each club could bring.
Councillor Juanita Wilson guarding events like these were “future-building for the city”.
“It’s so important events go ahead and go ahead here,” she said.
“We need to guard activities like this for the future.”
Councillor Charles Impey, who sits on the city’s sports working group, said it was important for the council to be able to draw more visitors into Tamworth.
“The more people who visit, the better it is,” he said.
“I wonder how many people end up living here after visiting – I’m one of those people, and it’s vital to make sure more and more visit.”
A council report estimated the 2017 primary games pumped more than $1.7 million into the local economy.
The NPG had $4638.74 discounted from its fees, while the baseball carnival had $2057.10 waived, which represented 40 per cent of its respective charges.