Cessnock council last night voted in favour of looking into the feasibility of a levy as part of the $65,000 Vineyards Visioning plan.

The council is commissioning consultants to draw up a document that will shape the future of the area's wine and tourism industries, which employ more than 5000 locals and attract an estimated three million tourists to the area each year.

Some of the big name concerts to come to the region recently include Fleetwood Mac, Rob Thomas, Eric Clapton and Whitney Houston.

At a council meeting in August last year Cr Neil Gorman said he had spoken to the department of planning regarding a levy for concerts suggesting that the money could come in the form of a section 94 (developer) contribution.

A report to last night's council meeting said that in considering a levy the provisions of the council's Tourism Contributions Plan need to be considered.

Contributions payable under the plan are based on the cost of the provision of additional facilities for the increased number of tourists visiting mostly the vineyard area, the report said.

Cr James Ryan said he supported the idea of a levy because concerts had become such a big part of business and were having a noticeable impact on the community.

Traffic problems have occurred during some large-scale winery events.