Haze over dragway as racing legend denies doling out jobs

[SpoolMan]

THE Greens have called on the corporate watchdog on to examine the financial viability of the Sydney Dragway amid allegations of favouritism by the chairman of the board.

Australian drag-racing legend Jim Read has headed the board of Western Sydney International Dragway at Eastern Creek since it opened in 2004, after the NSW government paid $30 million of taxpayers' money to build it. He strongly denies any wrongdoing.

His wife Denise runs all the merchandising at the dragway and is responsible for sponsors' signage and logos - exactly the same sponsors she deals with in her similar role with her husband's Jim Read Racing team.

One of the drivers of that team is Mr Read's son, Phil Read, whose plumbing firm provides much of the maintenance for plumbing work at the dragway.

In the past his stepdaughter Monique has operated the public address system, stepdaughter Melissa has sold programs, son Luke has done maintenance and nephew Michael Ryan lived in a flat at the site to provide security.

A former director and accountant of the WSID, Ian Seckold, said: ''The joke at the track was that if your name wasn't Read you couldn't get a job here.

''Phil was doing any of the plumbing that needed to be fixed. He did a good job, though.''

Former director David Cook, who helped Mr Read establish the dragway, said: ''Many people worked very hard, committing a great deal of effort, passion and money to the establishment of Western Sydney International Dragway. It was planned to meet the needs of both the sport and the many individuals involved. It appears to be failing to meet either goal at the moment.''

Sylvia Hale, Greens MP and spokeswoman for Western Sydney, said: ''It is time that the Australian Securities and Investments Commission stepped in to investigate the operation of this company.

''The public needs to know now that its assets are being properly managed.

''Should the company fail, the $30 million of public funds invested in the venture could be lost entirely.''

One of the directors on the WSID board, which two years ago approved an almost $200,000 unsecured loan to Mr Read, is Robert Cavagnino, who is also the crew chief of one of Mr Read's racing teams. Also on the board is former NSW Labor Party staffer and deputy mayor of Liverpool Tony Beuk and his ex-wife Diane. Mr Beuk used his Labor connections to lobby for the government to build the raceway.

Ms Hale said: ''It rings alarm bells to learn that an employee of the Labor Party heads up a public company that receives ongoing government funding for the construction and operation of the dragway.

''WSID's manager, Tony Beuk, is still listed on the Labor Party's website as an employee of the NSW branch of the ALP."

Mr Beuk signed off the last financial reports for the not-for-profit organisation. The latest, for the year ending June 2008, shows that the dragway made a loss of $758,153. It also received a grant of $225,296 and at the same time loaned Mr Read $190,887.

Mr Read has just returned from America where he was inducted into the Drag Racing Hall of Fame in Florida. He denies any suggestion of wrongdoing. ''This place wouldn't exist without me,'' he said.

The last financial return filed by the dragway, again for the year ending June 2008, showed that Mr Read collected a salary package worth a total of almost $160,000.

''I am the one who didn't go to work for seven years to get the place built,'' he said. ''There was no one else except my wife, she gave up seven years of her life to set up this place.''

He said he had been accused of many things, all of which were false. ''We have an open book here,'' he said.

''Jim Read Racing is losing money because my sponsors are putting money into the racetrack. The only one of my family who works here is my wife.

''My son quoted for all those plumbing jobs.''

And he stressed that the $190,887 loan had been repaid.

The dragway also made more than $100,000 in donations to the Labor Party between 2003 and 2007. But, until recently, it did not pay rent.

Landlord Western Sydney Parklands Trust said the original agreement allowed for capital improvements to be made to the site in lieu of rent.

Trust director Suellen Fitzgerald said: ''The Western Sydney Parklands Trust, which has been responsible for administration of the lease since July last year, renegotiated terms and the Western Sydney International Dragway Ltd is now being charged rent.''

NSW Sport and Recreation Minister Kevin Greene's spokesman said: ''The Western Sydney International Dragway Ltd is a public company. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is the relevant corporate regulator.

''Commercial matters such as those relating to employees and loans are matters for the board of Western Sydney International Dragway Ltd.''
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Taxpayers fork out $500,000 for exhibition shed ... and get marquee


WESTERN Sydney International Dragway boss Jim Read announced proudly two weeks ago that workers were putting the finishing touches to an exhibition shed and pit extension funded by a $1.7 million government grant.

But Paul Stephens, who helped the dragway apply for the grant, was astonished to see a marquee where the $500,000 exhibition shed was to have been built.

Mr Stephens, from Macarthur Sheds, said: ''I spent quite a lot of money to help them put that proposal together. I costed it all, they applied for it and nothing ever came of it.''

As far as he knew the only work on the shed was the construction of an asphalt platform and temporary marquee. He queried how the $1.7 million was spent.

A spokesman for NSW Sport and Recreation Minister Kevin Greene confirmed the $1.7 million was for pit extensions and an undercover trade and exhibition building on the Eastern Creek site. ''I am advised that the works have been completed,'' he said.

Mr Read told The Sun-Herald: ''The men are outside now putting the finishing touches to it.''

Source SMH.
MATTHEW BENNS
April 25, 2010

[v gate]

Dont look to good does it.To an out sider it reaks conflict of interest. Way to many ??? that should be answerd. Hopefully its all on the level but sometimes mud sticks where it should and sometimes where it shouldnt. I guess we will have to see who,s up who and who,s payin and who,s not

[COUPE 72]

Its all well and good to quote a plumbing job, but if its not put out to tender or there isnt more quotes to go against it then it looks bad. Then again if they did discounted work which is below true value of a job then they are doing the track a favor. As for taking a wage of $160,000, doesnt sound that much when other companies that make losses that pay their ceo's millions in bonuses and golden hand shakes.
I hope for drag racings sake that everything is above board. As long as no funds from the track are being mis-appropriated and maintenance and jobs aren't being made up it should be ok. That exhibition shed sounds a bit sus though.
As Read has said he was instrumental in getting WSID up and running lets hope he's not responsible for its downfall.

[SpoolMan]

Updating this thread more news after 10 months.

New broom on dragway board
.
THE board of Western Sydney Dragway has been suspended, following allegations of favouritism, nepotism and calls for the corporate watchdog to conduct an inquiry into its financial management.

The high-stakes world of drag racing has been rife with accusations about the operation of the public company that runs the NSW government's dragway track at Eastern Creek, including claims it has mounting debts it cannot pay.

The troubles at the track, revealed in The Sun-Herald and The Sydney Morning Herald, have led to an outsider being installed to take over from racing legend Jim Read as head of the Western Sydney International Dragway Ltd.
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Mr Read's opponents in the racing community claimed he ran it as his fiefdom, giving work at the dragway to his wife, his sons, his stepdaughters and a nephew.

Liverpool businessman and motor sport insurer Sam Sofi has been asked to take on the chairman's position and has been given ''full control'' of the company for the next six months. He will also lead an independent review of the company's operations.

Mr Sofi said he would bring in a team of independent experts to review the finances of the company, operations of the board, management structure, membership, communication and conduct of events.

He will report to the annual general meeting at the end of July.

''I will go through every one of the issues that have been raised,'' Mr Sofi said. ''If there are any old accusations, they will be put to rest. I am not interested in hearsay or innuendo.''

Mr Read had either led the board of the dragway or been chief executive since it opened in 2004 after an injection of $30 million from the government was used to build it.

The Sun-Herald revealed last year that the NSW government helped a Labor mate, Tony Beuk, to build the drag strip on public land set aside for a much-needed rubbish tip.

Planning permission had been given for the 4.5 million tonne extension to the Eastern Creek waste facility when the government reversed its decision and paid $30 million to build the Western Sydney Dragway instead.

The government then leased the dragway to an organisation run by Mr Beuk, a former Liverpool deputy mayor and Labor Party employee, and Mr Read.

Questions have been asked about why the dragway - which has received about $3 million in government grants for upgrades, plus more than $1 million in a waiver of its rent for the first five years - has been making big donations to the NSW Labor Party. It has donated $168,050 to the party since 2003, according to NSW Election Funding Authority records.

Last year, the Coalition and the Greens called on the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to examine the financial viability of the Western Sydney Dragway.

Last week, at a meeting of concerned drag-racers, questions were also raised about the ability of the non-profit company to pay its mounting debts. Mr Sofi said: ''I am not beholden to anyone … and I don't have any baggage. But if anyone has any hard evidence on wrongdoing they should bring it to me, and if I think there is credible evidence of wrongdoing, I will be the first one to refer it to the appropriate authorities.''

It has been revealed that the dragway owes the sport's governing body, the Australian National Drag Racing Association (ANDRA), about $225,000 in accumulated costs.

ANDRA's chief executive Tony Thornton was confident the dragway would be able to pay off the debt and called the ''rejig'' of the board a positive move.

Board members Mr Beuk and Geoffrey Crisp did not return calls to The Sun-Herald.

Mr Read said his house had been burgled and he did not want to talk.

Western Sydney Dragway has not filed its financial statement for 2009-10, so the current financial position remains unclear.

Natalie O'Brien
January 23, 2011
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/new-broom-...122-1a0jv.html
n.obrien@fairfaxmedia.com.au

[jcxr]

Hope our government takes a look at where the $$$'s got spent at Calder Park also. Seems a lot of taxpayers monies got spent there.

[yogi351]

Originally Posted by jcxr

Hope our government takes a look at where the $$$'s got spent at Calder Park also. Seems a lot of taxpayers monies got spent there.

Calder hasn't received any Government funding, they have only looked into it so far as an option to building a new track....