It's been more than two years, but finally the Yours and Owls Festival is returning but with a new home which will hopefully allow more tickets to be sold.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Across October 14 and 15, the University of Wollongong will host the city's biggest music festival in a move that shouldn't see it ever cancelled due to wild weather.
Stuart Park at North Wollongong has become too "risky" for event operators to be confident they won't get rained out, as happened to Yours and Owls in April 2022.
The event founders - Balunn Jones, Adam Smith and Ben Tillman - said severe weather events had been a hurdle for them, but there were other factors with Stuart Park pushing them to find a new venue.
![You might know this as a footy oval but come October thousands of happy music lovers will be dancing to the beat of Yours and Owls. Event founders Ben Tillman, Ballunn Jones, Adam Smith have made a deal with UOW Vice-Chancellor Patricia Davidson to move the festival to the uni. Picture by Sylvia Liber. You might know this as a footy oval but come October thousands of happy music lovers will be dancing to the beat of Yours and Owls. Event founders Ben Tillman, Ballunn Jones, Adam Smith have made a deal with UOW Vice-Chancellor Patricia Davidson to move the festival to the uni. Picture by Sylvia Liber.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/UPAcJLQNVGftX3BUDy544C/a55f6325-828a-49d8-aac4-4b19e2d151e5.jpg/r0_0_4785_3190_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
"Stuart Park has been a fantastic event site, but it's complicated, the weather issues are only one side of it," Jones told the Mercury.
"Then there's the indigenous heritage perspective, it's a multi-use site, there's [surrounding] residents, all the gym classes, and so many people wanting to use that space for different things."
He said Wollongong Council's masterplan for the site and putting it out for public consultation was fantastic, but they expected it to take quite a few years before it came into play.
Thomas Dalton Park in Fairy Meadow had been used as an alternative previously, but the organisers said council had made it "very clear" it was a sporting oval, while they also felt the field a little boring for what they needed.
[UOW] is a bigger space with a lot of really favourable things for a larger capacity.
- Y&O's Adam Smith
![Flashback to 2019 when the Yours and Owls Festival rocked out at Stuart Park in North Wollongong. It has since played out at Thomas Dalton Park but now will move to UOW. Picture by Anna Warr. Flashback to 2019 when the Yours and Owls Festival rocked out at Stuart Park in North Wollongong. It has since played out at Thomas Dalton Park but now will move to UOW. Picture by Anna Warr.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/UPAcJLQNVGftX3BUDy544C/e94b73fe-6410-4bba-9ea4-63a2bb5d99a2.jpg/r0_0_5304_3536_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Smith said they'd loved their time in North Wollongong but it became "too hard", while their new venue brought opportunities to increase capacity to change the look of the setup.
"It's all pending approvals, but there's definitely so much scope to grow," he said.
"And it is a bigger space with a lot of really favourable things for a larger capacity."
Then there's the environmental considerations by using existing infrastructure, with Tillman adding they won't need to "chop up the earth" every time they hold the event.
Destination Wollongong's Jeremy Wilshire said UOW has probably been "under-utilised" as a major events space in the past.
![Stuart Park still has major drainage issues, as seen on Sunday during the Mothers Day Classic in Wollongong. Picture by Adam McLean. Stuart Park still has major drainage issues, as seen on Sunday during the Mothers Day Classic in Wollongong. Picture by Adam McLean.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/UPAcJLQNVGftX3BUDy544C/722fa3d3-b215-4ba8-a218-4c65cc10fed0.jpg/r0_0_6720_4480_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
"It makes sense when you consider the physical space, infrastructure and demographic ... it's good news for the city if they're a stronger presence on the radar," Wilshire said.
"Stuart Park is still highly sought-after by event operators given its location, but it has some drainage issues ... we took a hit in industry confidence because we lost some events and that's something we're still working through.
"It's a site that needs to be carefully managed when it comes to prioritising the type and scale of events."
A Wollongong Council spokesperson said while stormwater improvement works and the expansion of public amenities were in their masterplan, bus has "not been budgeted for in the current infrastructure delivery program".
Stuart Park is still highly sought-after by event operators given its location, but it has some drainage issues ... we took a hit in industry confidence because we lost some events and that's something we're still working through.
- Destination Wollongong's Jeremy Wilshire
Meantime, UOW Vice-Chancellor Patricia Davidson was thrilled for the partnership with Yours and Owls.
She said the three university alumni have helped change the cultural and creative landscape of Wollongong over the past decade.
"The relationship between Yours and Owls and UOW is a natural fit for us," she said.
"It is a chance for us to showcase the beauty of our campus, to encourage the community to have fun and enjoy some of the best live music around in a safe and relaxed setting."
The 2023 lineup for the music and arts festival is yet to be announced.
For more details, visit: www.yoursandowls.com.au.