Big Day Out first at Arena Joondalup

With Perth's 2014 Big Day Out set to be held at the Arena Joondalup tomorrow (Sunday 2nd February), in a festival first, VenuesWest has introduced 'suburban custodian' teams for the event.

Introducing the initiative, VenuesWest Chairman Graham Partridge explained "VenuesWest and Big Day out are determined to see that the residents of Joondalup receive first class service before, during and after Big Day Out.

"Teams consisting of security and cleaning will be patrolling neighborhoods and local business areas around the Arena Joondalup site throughout the day and after the event. They will leave the venue when the concert ends with the departing festival goers and remain in the local streets for an hour after the event.

"Residents can contact the team leaders through Arena Joondalup if they want to raise any issues."

"Our suburban custodians will quickly and quietly ensure that any impact on the surrounding streets as people head home is minimal."

"VenuesWest and Big Day Out want to ensure that the people of Joondalup are left with a positive impression."

"Whilst we know this is an unusual service we are responding to the comments voiced by residents. We want to present both an excellent outdoor music event for local youth and maintain our civic responsibility as a member of the Joondalup community."

"Suburban custodian teams will not be there to do the job of the WA Police and VenuesWest will notify local Police if any incident occurs."

"Joondalup should benefit in every way from Big Day Out."

Big Day Out Perth organisers moved the music festival from the Claremont Showground to Arena Joondalup just a few weeks after long-running disagreements with Claremont Council.

Big Day Out Chief Executive Adam Zammit said decades of fighting with the Town of Claremont and last minute noise-monitoring conditions had forced organisers to relocate north.

Zammit told the Sydney Morning Herald "unlike any other state where we get a welcome mat rolled out, we have willing venues, excited venues like the City of Joondalup, the Town of Claremont have been the complete opposite of that."

VenuesWest is Western Australia's provider of premier sports, recreation and entertainment venues and its portfolio includes the Perth Arena, nib Stadium, Challenge Stadium, Arena Joondalup, WA Athletics Stadium, WA Basketball Centre, Midvale Speeddome, Perth Motorplex, Champion Lakes Regatta Centre and the WA Rugby Centre, with the State Netball Centre and the Western Australian Institute of Sports High Performance Service Centre under construction.

VenuesWest was recently named as the governance agency for the new Perth Stadium.

http://www.bigdayout.com/