Race days at Newcastle Racecourse will gallop ahead after the jockey club received state planning approval for a new stables complex on the site.
The $35.5 million project would include seven new structures able to accommodate up to 480 horses.
"This new complex will replace the existing stables located on the other side of the racecourse, and ensure the future of the club, which has been operating for more than 100 years," a spokesperson from the Department of Planning and Environment said.
"Not only is this going to boost the race day economy, it will also create 250 construction jobs, 84 new ongoing operational jobs, and job security for the 102 existing workers already employed at the racecourse.
"Thoroughbred racing is a $2.6 billion industry in NSW and regional racecourses like this one make up a big part of that, so putting on great meets with the best facilities is so important to these clubs.
"In operation for over 100 years, the Newcastle Racecourse is the largest provincial club in NSW and hosts 34 race meetings a year. With its close proximity to the rich breeding areas of the Hunter Valley, the improvements are well placed to ensure that the venue continues to be one of the State's major training centres and a top-class regional racecourse."
