Tourism Noosa (TN) chair Alan Golley fronted Noosa Council’s general committee meeting on Monday to represent the organisation’s members and call for council’s continued funding.
Mr Golley, who is Seahaven resort general manager, Hastings Street Association secretary, Cooroy State School P&C president, said he was speaking on behalf of the 450 businesses and community groups that make up TN’s membership, businesses that understand the critical role TN plays in shaping economy and the Noosa brand both for visitors and locals.
“TN was established as a not-for-profit destination marketing organisation, not a private company, not a for-profit marketing firm and certainly not a political body,“ Mr Golley said.
“It was created for the business community to promote the region, and to promote the Noosa brand.
“For over two decades we’ve worked collaboratively with council, not against it in the best interests of Noosa.
“There is no personal benefit to the board or the volunteers. It’s scrutinised by council and by local tourism and non-tourism businesses that make up the membership.
“TN is here asking council to accept a further term to our current funding and performance deed, honouring their commitment to the business community until their Destination Management Plan (DMP) is ready and we can renegotiate the terms of the deed.
“The funding and performance deed heavily emphasised TN’s strategic direction would be guided by the DMP, and that TN would implement relevant aspects of it.
“With the DMP delayed, TN needs to continue the work of the council-endorsed four year destination strategy that we presented two years ago.
“Originally TN was funded by a specific tourism and economic levy. This made the link between visitor economy support and business contributions completely transparent.
“When council chose to move that levy into general rates it noted that tourism and economic development activities should be funded by general rates but applied only to businesses that are currently paying the levy.
“As such the amount of revenue collected and subsequently spent on delivering these services to support tourism and the visitor economy will remain unchanged, clearly understood by the business community that what was contributed would therefore be spent on brand management would not change.
“Businesses continue to pay these contributions year on year and they have increased.
There’s been no CPI increase to TN’s core funding for 10 years. Had CPI been introduced back at the start over a 10-year period TN’s operating revenue today from the council would be $3.2 million.
“Over 10 years that’s $3 million in efficiencies that our organisation has had to find.
“Over the last few years, as businesses general rates have increased by CPI those funds have been diverted into economic development activities and helping council to weather their own inflationary pressures to the budget.
“We know tourism is not the only industry in town. It is however a significant industry, arguably the largest.
“Tourism businesses support many other businesses within our shire engaged in goods and services.
“This is apparent in an independent study that found 45 per cent of businesses rely on tourism for most of their operating income and a further 30 per cent of businesses rely on it for some of their income.
“That’s 75 per cent of businesses that directly feel the benefits of the visitor economy.
“These businesses are owned and operated by locals, by rate payers and they employ many locals to keep their businesses running.
“We also need to look at the broader economic climate. I’m sure our residents are already starting to feel the effects of a volatile market.
“The world is entering a period of financial uncertainty. Indicators of local recession are appearing and whether it’s consumer sentiment, discretionary spending or international travel patterns we are going to feel it.
“Now is not a time to devalue one of organisations that has the expertise, the ability and credibility to respond when economic conditions tighten.
“The current deed specifically noted that negotiations for a further term should have been completed by 31 December 2024.
“Council has delayed this process through reasons we understand but it’s already having real impacts with TN not being able to fully commit to our winter campaign which we operate every year supporting tourism through the quiet winter months and supporting the Noosa economy through that period.
“When the global financial crisis hit, during the Covid-19 pandemic, floods, fires and most recently cyclones that impacted our businesses TN mobilised quickly to support local businesses, protect our brand and stimulate the visitor economy.
“We know that tourism activity in Noosa is not all attributed to TN activity.
If we didn’t exist people would still come.
“But the most dangerous thing we can do right now is to devalue the Noosa brand, a premium, nature-based, values-driven brand that took decades to build.
“Other destinations are actively seeking the same markets that we are and by failing to invest in the brand our share of that market diminishes we get lower demand for our brand, which means we’ll have to bring down accommodation rates to get people through the doors.
“This will attract more people from those lower value, higher volume markets. They stay less, they spend less, they’ll be increased effects on residential amenity with more of those low value people and less economic stimulation from the visitor economy.
“This will also impact business investment in the shire.
“This is not hype. Tourism is a competitive market and we must remain in front.
“We know that Noosa’s appeal is not built only in what we offer to visitors but in what we protect for residents.
“TN does not aim to increase the volume for volume sake or to push overflow tourism into the hinterland or to actively seek out residential properties to convert into STAs. Quite the opposite. It’s strategy focuses on high value, value for life visitation. Visitors who stay longer, spend more and respect the place.
“We promote tourists staying in Noosa, visit the hinterland so they can spread the economic value through the shire.
“Our strategy clearly works. Visitation numbers have dropped from 2.5million per year in 2015 to our recent stats showing just below 2 million annual visitors
“A drop of 300,000 day trippers per year when the population of SEQ has grown from 3.4 million to 4.1 million
“Visitation decreasing by 22 per cent yet the value of the visitor economy has continued to grow.
“Creating division in the community and spreading misinformation about our strategy is not in the best interests of the community.
“We actively bring together stakeholders from across the shire through regular roundtable meetings, environmental groups, business associations, council staff and other interest groups.
“This collaboration ensures that tourism strategies are aligned, with shared values and our actions are informed, transparent and responsible.
“TN doesn’t view itself as separate from the community, it is an integral part of the community, made up of locals, businesses, parents, volunteers, employees and advocates.
“These people all share a deep care for this place and a genuine commitment to getting the balance right.
“Noosa doesn’t need the same level of destination marketing it did 10 or 20 years ago. We acknowledge that. That’s exactly why our approach has changed.
“Today destination marketing isn’t about billboards and mass exposure, it’s about targeted engagement, reputation management. It’s about value alignment. It’s about education. Were constantly analysing trends, visitor sentiment and community values to ensure that the Noosa brand remains competitive, relevant and reflective of who we are as a shire.
“TN’s strategic plan places the natural environment as a core value. This isn’t lip service. It’s measurable, resourced and longterm commitment. We deliver education to visitors on how to travel responsibly. We promote low impact experiences.
“We have developed campaigns around nature, wildlife protection and we’ve have partnered with and run entire campaigns promoting UNESCO Noosa Biosphere Reserve and are a partner with Noosa Landcare through our Trees for Tourism program which helps to regenerate koala corridors and manage erosion in our hinterland. True tourism giving back to the environment.
“We recognise as a broader business community that the natural environment is our economy. Protecting it isn’t just good PR, it’s essential and TN has been leading that conversation in a way that both aligns with council’s values and the wider aspirations of the community and there is much more work to be done in this space.
“TN has evolved to meet the moment. It’s tightened its budget and shifted its strategy and collaborated more than ever before and it’s done so while being held to increasingly higher standards, ones that it consistently meets.
“We are not here asking for more. We are simply asking that the original agreement be honoured, the funding continued to a level that reflects the value of the business community it represents, until we can renegotiate terms based on the DMP.
“This is not about marketing, it’s about brand management, it’s about our reputation as a shire, it’s about jobs, families, the future of Noosa as place to live and work.“
Council’s Financial Performance Report shows all instalments of Council’s $2.52 million funding agreement for 2024-25 have been made with the Tourism Noosa agreement due for renewal in June.
