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Otago Daily Times
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Dunedin misses out on festival, eyes other events
Hamilton is the new host of the Homegrown festival. PHOTO: SUPPLIED While Dunedin may have narrowly missed out on securing a major music festival, the man in charge of the city's stadium says it is not the only event in its sights. Organisers announced yesterday Hamilton had been selected as the new home of the Jim Beam Homegrown music festival - with Dunedin singled out as a close second choice. Dunedin Venues chief executive Paul Doorn. PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSH The annual festival has been held on Wellington's waterfront since 2008. Homegrown Events Ltd managing director Andrew Tuck said yesterday the proposal to move the event to Dunedin ''held firm and was in our final top two until the bitter end''. The decision came down to geography and making the music festival accessible to those who planned on travelling, he said. But Dunedin had potential that was yet to be unlocked, and further discussions were to be held with Dunedin Venues Management Ltd (DVML) about bringing a unique and regular music event to the city. These talks could happen within the next 12 months, Mr Tuck said. DVML chief executive Paul Doorn said it was disappointing Hamilton ''pipped us at the post'', but was pleased with the feedback they had received from the entertainment provider. The organisation had worked closely with the Dunedin City Council to make both the proposal and the Forsyth Barr Stadium precinct ''as compelling as we possibly can''. ''I thought we really offered up a compelling argument. Obviously Hamilton's done something similar and they've got the gig.'' Mr Doorn said DVML had already identified music festivals as ''a bit of a gap'' for Dunedin and it was working with promoters to explore what a music festival similar to Homegrown could look like in the city - among other concepts.
Otago Daily Times
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Dunedin misses out on festival
Hamilton is the new host of the Homegrown festival. PHOTO: SUPPLIED While Dunedin may have narrowly missed out on securing a major music festival, the man in charge of the city's stadium says it is not the only event in its sights. Organisers announced yesterday Hamilton had been selected as the new home of the Jim Beam Homegrown music festival - with Dunedin singled out as a close second choice. Dunedin Venues chief executive Paul Doorn. PHOTO: PETER MCINTOSH The annual festival has been held on Wellington's waterfront since 2008. Homegrown Events Ltd managing director Andrew Tuck said yesterday the proposal to move the event to Dunedin ''held firm and was in our final top two until the bitter end''. The decision came down to geography and making the music festival accessible to those who planned on travelling, he said. But Dunedin had potential that was yet to be unlocked, and further discussions were to be held with Dunedin Venues Management Ltd (DVML) about bringing a unique and regular music event to the city. These talks could happen within the next 12 months, Mr Tuck said. DVML chief executive Paul Doorn said it was disappointing Hamilton ''pipped us at the post'', but was pleased with the feedback they had received from the entertainment provider. The organisation had worked closely with the Dunedin City Council to make both the proposal and the Forsyth Barr Stadium precinct ''as compelling as we possibly can''. ''I thought we really offered up a compelling argument. Obviously Hamilton's done something similar and they've got the gig.'' Mr Doorn said DVML had already identified music festivals as ''a bit of a gap'' for Dunedin and it was working with promoters to explore what a music festival similar to Homegrown could look like in the city - among other concepts.
Otago Daily Times
05-05-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Dunedin narrowly misses out on major festival
Dunedin has missed out on bringing Homegrown festival to the city next year. PHOTO: SUPPLIED. Dunedin has fallen at the final hurdle in its bid to host a major music festival at Forsyth Barr Stadium. The city made it to the final two before losing out to Hamilton for the right to stage the multi-stage, all-New Zealand-acts festival previously held on the Wellington waterfront. Festival organisers now say they would like to bring another event to the city in the future. Dunedin Venues Management Ltd (DVML) chief executive Paul Doorn was "disappointed" the city was not selected as the event's next long-term home. "The Dunedin proposal showcased the benefits of hosting a music festival in and around the Forsyth Barr Stadium precinct – a space which provides ideal conditions for a music festival such as Homegrown. "With a strong base of festivalgoers, including thousands of students and music lovers, Dunedin remains an exciting place to host a large-scale high-energy festival, and Dunedin Venues will continue to work towards achieving this goal." Homegrown director Andrew Tuck said nine venues were in the running to host the festival and Dunedin just missed out. "We considered everything: geography, population, demographics, transport, flights, and accommodation. "Throughout this process, the Dunedin proposal held firm and was in our final top two until the bitter end." The process established Dunedin "as a city we would like to bring an event to". "Throughout the process, the Dunedin Venues team were really great to deal with, and we hope to work with them in the future." DVML's bid for Homegrown came at a transitional period — Christchurch's $683 million covered stadium Te Kaha will open next year, posing a direct threat to Forsyth Barr Stadium for concerts and events. - APL
