The Dapto showground owners have hit back at suggestions they have been "secretly" trying to redevelop their land and push out the long-running greyhound races, as the fight over the future of Dapto Dogs continues before the courts.
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In a statement released after media reports about a draft masterplan to redevelop the showground surfaced on Wednesday, the Dapto Agricultural and Horticultural Society (DAHS) said they were happy to see dog racing continue as long as it didn't interfere with other operations.
Accordingly, they have offered a lease for Greyhound Racing NSW to take over the running of dog races each Thursday, they said.
"We believe DAHS is a precious local community asset and its current and future use should be determined by the community as a whole, not one isolated user of the facilities," the statement said.
"We acknowledge the precious history of the Dapto Dogs and see no reason this could not continue in harmony with all other community groups which enjoy the benefits of the location.
"We are prepared today to offer a lease to GRNSW to come in each Thursday and run dog races and take full responsibility for all elements of the operations."
Up until October 31, the races were run by the Dapto Greyhound Racing Club, a sub-committee of the DAHS board.
This changed dramatically on November 6, when the society abruptly announced greyhound racing at Dapto would cease after a breakdown in negotiations with GRNSW.
The following day, an angry GRNSW chief Tony Mestrov fronted the Dapto track and announced he had appointed administrator Grant Carroll to take over operations.
The two parties then clashed in court, and last week Supreme Court Justice Stephen Robb ordered that administrator Mr Carroll be allowed to conduct greyhound racing, while the DAHS board will run all other arms of the organisation.
The matter will return to court next year, with the DAHS claiming the appointment of Mr Carroll is invalid.
Questions about the legitimacy of his appointment were also raised by Justice Robb when handing down his interim decision.
Regarding the emergence of apparently "secret" redevelopment plans, which Mr Mestrov has labelled "a pre-meditated act of betrayal", the society said they have been in the works for some time and that GRNSW was fully aware of the plans..
"These are draft plans and far from being a secret they have been the subject of numerous discussions with greyhound authorities for more than 12 months," the statement said.
This is backed by the lengthy judgement handed down by Justice Robb, which highlights emails between DAHS and GRNSW from as early as February detailing the redevelopment plans.
The DAHS says it has been working on various redevelopment concepts for several years, including one in 2016 when greyhound racing was briefly banned by then Premier Mike Baird.