Coffs Harbour Entertainment Venue (CHEV) Scoping Study

Further progress on an Entertainment Venue in Coffs Harbour City Centre has been put on hold until City of Coffs Harbour’s General Fund is in surplus, which is expected to be in the 2027-2028 financial year.

“Last month, Council adopted a revised capital works program with the aims of maintaining financial sustainability, setting an achievable level of deliverability and realigning expectations to a more sustainable level,” said Natalia Cowley, City of Coffs Harbour’s General Manager.

“Fundamentally, we took a long hard look at what kind of capital program – which not only includes construction, but also ongoing operations and depreciation of any such assets - we can resource.

“While no one is denying the merits and benefits that a Coffs Harbour Entertainment Venue could offer our community, the significant capital and operational costs mean that we should look at this project again when we’re in a surplus financial position.”

Current cost estimates for a Coffs Harbour Entertainment Venue (CHEV) are:

• Capital cost of $70m (based on 2019 figures), including parking but excluding escalation and contingency funds;
• Operating cost, including depreciation, of $2.5m a year (based on 2022 figures).

A previous stage of the project’s Scoping Study – the Functional Brief – established that the proposed Venue would need to be a 2,500 square metre multi-functional hub, able to accommodate an audience of up to 820 people in a flexible, inclusive space.

Following Council’s adoption of the Functional Brief in September 2021, a Site Analysis of potential locations within the City Centre was undertaken.

In total, 13 initial sites were considered. These were further examined and three preferred sites received more detailed site analysis and testing. Ultimately, the study highlighted the current Council Chambers site at 2 Castle Street as the preferred location for the CHEV.

“None of this work will be wasted,” added Ms Cowley.“The CHEV Scoping Study project has provided us with with an endorsed functional brief and financial information.

“However, based on the fiscal environment and financial capacity of the organisation, it’s more prudent to halt the project at this time.”

Council agreed to put the project on hold and also to retain the Council Chambers building at 2 Castle Street pending an analysis of alternate options to its sale as previously planned under the Yarrila Place funding model.

The ideal Coffs Harbour Entertainment Venue (CHEV) has been revealed to be a multi-functional hub that could hold a wide variety of performances and events including music, eisteddfods, dance, comedy, theatre, movies, conferences, expos and more.

An outline of the size and community requirements the CHEV would need to meet were contained in the first stage of a Scoping Study for the project – The Functional Brief - which was adopted at the 23 September 2021 Council Meeting.

A venue of this size and capacity would ensure it could attract a wide range of touring acts, accommodate special local performances and provide reasonable economic returns.

Developed through consultation with industry experts and potential users, the Functional Brief recommends a minimum size of 2,500 square metres and a flexible performance space with raked seating for up to 700 people, or 820 in both standing and seating format.

Now that the venue uses and size has been established, the Scoping Study can move to the next stage to confirm an appropriate location in the City Centre.

The Functional Brief can be downloaded from the Document Library to understand industry feedback, examples of similar regional case studies, and what this means for the venue.

Click on the video below for an overview of the Functional Brief recommendations and examples of future uses.

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The first phase of the Study is underway with industry stakeholders involved in developing a “Preliminary Functional Brief”.

The Project team are consulting with a range of community performance and cultural groups as well as local and national promoters and producers.

This Functional Brief is a key piece of work that scopes the design and size of spaces for a complete range of entertainment and social experiences. This includes all aspects of the venue from the entrance to foyers, amenities, bars and ancillary spaces, the performance spaces as well as artists and technical staff backstage.

Council has appointed a multi-disciplinary team made up of Hawkridge Entertainment Services, Woolgoolga-based Locale Consulting and internationally renowned architects Scott Carver, after a month-long tender process.

This team has a strong track record of cultural infrastructure feasibility studies, as well as designing, building and managing live music and arts venues and know what makes a successful entertainment venue work.

They have excellent networks with a range of producers, promoters, venue managers and more recently with the Coffs Harbour community on performing arts spaces and facility site studies.

The Issues and Options Paper for Performing Arts Space (Indoor and Outdoor) was adopted by Council on 10 September 2020. The Draft Paper was open for public exhibition period between December 2019 - February 2020.

This Paper (included in this page's Document Library) provides an assessment of current performance and entertainment spaces / venues in the LGA and includes information about venue requirements, including actions and opportunities to meet current and future demand.

The key finding within this Paper is that there is an established need, including strong stakeholder and community support to construct an Indoor Performing Arts Centre with a capacity between 600-1000 seats.

The construction of a new indoor venue of this size requires further analysis, including a greater understanding of the operational costs to Council. At this Council Meeting, Councillors agreed to progress a study to scope the venue requirements, building footprint, determine the most suitable location within the City Centre and the operational and funding strategy.