Arthur Gorrie
Gympie Mayor Glenn Hartwig and Rattler Company General Manager Linda Barry have announced a parting of the ways.
At a press conference on Wednesday they announced an end date for council’s support and agreed to wipe a $900,000 debt.
This would be subject to council ratification and State Government approval.
Mayor Glen Hartwig said the new deal would provide ratepayers with a clearer idea of what it is they are investing in.
“It tidies up a lot of loose areas around leasing and asset responsibility but also gives some surety to ratepayers who ultimately are the major stakeholder and investor,“ Mr Hartwig said.
“What this means is there is a date put on the level of funding that will continue.
“So, if the agreement is ratified by council, there is an end date to that.
“Currently, under the arrangement there’s no end date.
“That creates some certainty for the ratepayer around how long they will continue to fund it.“
Mr Hartwig said the loan cancellation was common sense.
“Currently, (with) the agreement, we hand over $450,000 a year to the Rattler for operational expense and maintenance.
“We have an agreement where $50,000 of that comes back to council to repay the loan.“
The Mayor said the council was keen to see the Rattler able to be financially independent.
“Both parties want to see the success of the Rattler – there’s been a significant amount of money invested into it.
“And we both believe that the in-principle agreement that we have is the best way forward,“ he said.
Linda Barry thanked Gympie Regional Council for agreeing to the new arrangement, saying that the measures agreed would enable the Rattler to establish itself as a sustainable business that would provide the Gympie community with a significant tourism asset.
“As the Gympie region’s most well-known tourism asset that helps drive visitors to experience the wider Gympie/Mary Valley region, Council’s support for the Rattler is, in fact, an investment in economic development for the region,” said Ms Barry.
“The support we receive from Council has to be seen in the context of a totally disrupted business environment over the previous three years that could never have been anticipated in the original forecasting.
“We had bushfires, Covid, then floods, and even today, there is barely 30 per cent of international holiday travellers coming to Queensland compared to 2019.
“These set of circumstances are exceptional.
“We have been working closely with Council to put together a sustainable plan to ensure the continued operation of the Rattler, because it benefits so many other operators in the Gympie region.
“The heritage of the Mary Valley Rattler is important to the community, and as a volunteer-driven organisation, we believe there is good reason to continue the support for the Rattler as it returns to more normal trading conditions in the next few years.”
