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Council & Business

4 July, 2022

Council adopts retail recovery program despite questions around some aspects

The Central Goldfields Shire Council has adopted the Maryborough Retail Recovery Program, despite questions around “unintelligible” aspects of the document. Councillors moved to adopt the plan and receive a future report outlining the proposed...

By Riley Upton

Council adopts retail recovery program despite questions around some aspects - feature photo

The Central Goldfields Shire Council has adopted the Maryborough Retail Recovery Program, despite questions around “unintelligible” aspects of the document.

Councillors moved to adopt the plan and receive a future report outlining the proposed implementation of it at last week’s ordinary council meeting.

According to the report tabled to council, the need for new approaches to support the retail sector was identified as a key priority in council’s Economic Development Strategy, with the COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions further highlighting this.

Council engaged consultants SGS Economics and Hello City to work alongside the community in creating the program, the report states, which among other things would be used to build on existing strengths, provide a program of initiatives and recommendations responding to the needs and opportunities locally and encourage residents to shop local.

The plan presented to council states retail jobs account for 15 percent of local employment, with retail adding some $43 million to the Central Goldfields economy annually.

Speaking during the meeting, councillor Geoff Lovett said it was important local retailers were supported.

“In these trying economic times hard on the heels of three years of COVID challenges, along with the growth of online shopping, new and innovative measures must be tried to assist our retail and hospitality sector,” he said.

“In the short term, council have undertaken a number of responses and in the longer term, SGS Economics and Hello City have been tasked with finding out how this can be done.”

Cr Lovett, while supportive of the overall goal of the program, questioned aspects of the document tabled during the meeting, particularly relating to Nolan Street and Phillips Gardens.

“I acknowledge the companies have consulted widely with the community but my concern, and I have worked with consultants all my life, is consultants come into town and in the blink of an eye they think they know it all,” he said.

“The section of the report headed Spatial Analysis lists the main retail strip as High Street — I wonder what our Nolan Street traders think of this, including the recently reopened multi-million dollar IGA and Toyota dealership.

“In the original draft of this spatial report, Phillips Gardens was described as cluttered, run down and disconnected from High and Nolan streets — I wondered if the consultants had actually visited what I consider to be one of the jewels in Maryborough’s crown.

“We requested that a revised version of the plan be done for Phillips Gardens and it now reads that Phillips Gardens is spatially disconnected from High and Nolan streets and has key view lines broken by buildings.

“Spatially disconnected — what a quaint, unintelligible phrase known only to practitioners.

“I fully support the revitalisation initiative, but will most assuredly look at the final submissions very closely.”

Cr Gerard Murphy supported the views of Cr Lovett and said he was “flawed” by the consultants understanding of Phillips Gardens, acknowledging that without the inclusion of Nolan Street as part of Maryborough’s main retail strip, the plan did not make sense.

Cr Grace La Vella suggested the plan could change to include Nolan Street moving forward, highlighting the importance of supporting business.

“Retail recovery is so vital for our community, they’ve suffered enough through COVID,” she said.

“I agree with what you’re saying Cr Murphy, but we have to start somewhere and I think this is where we start.”

The motion to adopt the plan passed unanimously.

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