General News
5 August, 2025
TRC forks out $100,000 to push for more visitors
A RECOMMENDATION for Tablelands Regional Council to enter into a four-year funding agreement worth $400,000 with a local tourism industry organisation has been rejected at the last minute in favour of just a 12-month commitment.
Chief executive officer Dr Nikola Stepanov put forward the report which recommended council provide Tourism Atherton Tablelands (TAT) with $100,000 in annual funding for the next four years in a bid to elevate visitor numbers and regain the region’s market share of the tourist dollar.
But despite the report setting out the advantages of entering into the funding arrangement, a presentation from TAT chair Michelle Bell-Turner, and the CEO speaking to support the motion, the council could not agree to signing up to such a large commitment.
Council previously provided TAT with around $15,000 a year but that ceased some years ago, and according to Cr Annette Haydon, there was limited evidence the funding given to TAT in the past had led to tourism growth in the region.
She argued that council had other “pressing responsibilities” like roads, and waste and water infrastructure and the money “might be better spent on essential services like our libraries”.
Cr Haydon said it could be argued that tourism businesses should financially support TAT and that council funding could be viewed as “favouring one sector over others”.
But Deputy Mayor Dave Bilney fully supported the proposal, describing it as “an investment in the future of the region”.
“These organisations are at the forefront of promoting what makes our area unique, help attract visitors, drive economic growth and create opportunities for local businesses,” he said.
“By financially supporting TAT we are helping to build a stronger, more vibrant community for everyone.
“In my view, tourism on the Tablelands still holds significant untapped potential and the recommendation to provide support is both prudent and strategic and will carry my full support.”
Cr Bilney and Mayor Rod Marti were the only ones who backed the four-year arrangement, and with the motion lost, Cr Maree Baade put an alternative motion that the council provide $100,000 for one year which would allow the council to review how it worked before they entered into any long-term agreement.
But Cr Kevin Cardew said while he acknowledged the importance of the tourism industry to the economy, it was the “worst possible time to ask for $100,000”.
“We had a $3 million deficit last financial year and that’s a lot of money – we’re at a time when we need to tighten our belt….we’re faced with potentially having to close libraries, look at off-loading obsolete and ageing assets to be sustainable into the future, so until we can get ourselves into a better financial position, at this point in time, I can’t support this sort of money on tourism,” he said.
But Mayor Marti urged councillors to support the funding agreement, noting that neighbouring councils were investing more to attract the tourist dollar.
“When organisations like TAT come to council and ask for money, it’s never the right time….but if we look at our neighbouring councils, they are all making contributions quite a bit in excess of what we are,” he said.
“The time is now, we need to reinvest, we need to return the Tablelands to its rightful place in the tourism landscape, we need to kick some goals and really start driving up the local economy through tourism.”
During her presentation, Ms Bell-Turner told the council the time was right to invest more into the tourism industry and the returns would come.
While she recognised it was a “financially challenging time and funds can be tight”, she said community and business sustainability could be directly correlated to the tourist dollar spend.
“TRC currently has no full-time resources or budget to support tourism internally and if you were to put staff on internally, it would cost at least $200,000 and that’s without any budget for actually doing activities to bring people into the region,” Ms Bell-Turner said.
“The investment that we are asking of council, although it may appear costly, if well executed it will deliver more revenue to council.
“For every $10,000 of additional visitor spend, the council charges an extra $270 in water and waste rate levies.
“So, if we deliver 1% increase in market share, which is more than achievable for us, that would equate to an extra $43 million in visitor spend in the region for all our towns, and an extra $1.2 million into council revenue.
“That is definitely not insignificant and sometimes, in business, we have to spend money to make money.”
Council voted 5-2 to provide $100,000 a year for the next 12 months, with Crs Haydon and Cardew voting against the motion.
