ABOVE: The quiet campground at the old school on Lynchs Creek Rd. Photo: Susanna Freymark
Susanna Freymark
We asked all 12 candidates for the Kyogle Council elections what they thought about tourism.
It’s a diverse topic with many ideas and ways forward.
Seven candidates gave their answers. Here they are.
We asked:
How can tourism be managed well?
Vickie Steward: We need to tap into sectors where people come for a weekend or holiday, directing money into Kyogle LGA. Mountain biking and rail trails can be lucrative. Farm stays and art and craft weekends (learn to make cheese, draw or make a mosaic). Package deals to offer a variety of options across the entire LGA, not just Kyogle town.
Danielle Mulholland: There are a number of groups being very active in this space, creating niche tourism experiences. Cross border collaboration is important. Scenic Rim Council have established signature events that we could build on and a meeting is being organised to identify these opportunities. I’d like to see us create a food trail, a ‘rural experience’ for kids and adults and signature events in our town and villages.
James Murray: Tourism has long been touted as the goose that would lay the golden egg but it’s been a long time squeezing it out. The biggest increase in Kyogle is the number of motorcycle day trippers while Woodenbong benefits from adventure tourists. The biggest tourist impediment is roads infrastructure in state-controlled land. While council can promote tourism in the area it has no power over crown land infrastructure.
John Burley: Support sustainable growth of the visitor economy, amend the LEP to allow additional appropriate types of tourism accommodation development. Consult with native title claimants and other Aboriginal organisations to ascertain their cultural tourism aspirations. Research and prepare a tourism development strategy.
Rob Cullen: Gateway to the Rainforests? The gates are closed, the roads are so bad and facilities neglected. Facilitate farm stay experiences. Work with National Parks. A decent road over the range. Low-cost accommodation/camping and tour guides. Music and local Food Festivals in all the country halls. Toonumbar Dam. Eden Creek Falls. Sculptures by the Rivers.
Simon Dejoux: Our current Local Strategic Planning Statement aims to grow agriculture and tourism and support our existing businesses. We need to encourage tourism to the area by marketing its unique features. We could try food trails, a ‘rural experience’ for kids and adults, and signature events in our town and villages. Let’s showcase the best the area has to offer.
Tom Cooper: We need to explore what tourists really want to experience, not what we presume they want.
VOTE KYOGLE: Know more about the 12 people who could be your next councillors
and then
Thanks James Murray for mentioning Woodenbong. In this area we have 10 tourism operators off the top of my head. Surrounded by many National parks yet we have one walking track (easy grade 1km length) no roads maintained by either NPWS or Forestry and locked gates. At Council level what we need is some money spent on this village to attract people to stop and stay. Forget foody weekends and one off events put in some decent infrastructure and people will come invest and build. I’ve lived here 25 years and built 3 houses and a successful tourist business with my husband Dean Jeffery. Read our guests comments to see what they expect at Airbnb/WoodenbongB&B.
Liked Tom’s Response, short and to the point. Seems crazy to simply follow what all other areas nearby are doing instead of researching what your customers want.