When I first moved here in 1980, I thought that Armidale was the “Jewel in the Crown” of NSW. It had everything: the University with its multitude of functions, often including the town (remember Inaugural Speeches in Town Hall, May Balls); the museums; the high level of international artists, musicians, intellectuals; 3 magnificent waterfalls, The Blue Hole, the high altitude, the little satellite towns – Uralla, Hillgrove, Rocky River, Kentucky – all with something special to visit. NERAM & NECOM more ‘jewels.’ Good schools; an inclusive ‘vibe’. We weren’t trying to compete with any other town. There were no big events…apart from The Autumn Festival. Uralla is now THE place to go for a weekend coffee and catch-up. Their two hotels provide excellent meals if one is feeling flush.
Now, in 2025, I’ve been thinking about ‘Tourists’. Much is made by all Councils and State Governments of the benefits of tourists. The Tourism Dollar seems to be the ‘holy grail’…but why?
What do Tourists do?
a) they inject some money into the sights and/or events that are held in any one town or city some of the time.
b) Usually, the benefactors from this ‘largess’ are those selling food, accommodation and those involved in the specific function. BTW: every time there is a graduation ceremony, the town’s motels are booked out, and those wishing to attend, often need to go as far as Balala to find accommodation. There are about four graduations every year. The same holds true of big funerals.
c) There are always people stopping in Armidale visiting friends or on their way to other places who keep the motels pretty full most of the time; their business is not reliant on “Big Events” (other than the late Mrs. O’Malley’s Playhouse, or May Balls.)
Also in those halcyon days, the Council didn’t have to go cap in hand for every $$ needed to run the community…the revenue from rates was enough. The State has a lot to answer for – including the Lehman’s ‘advice’ which ruined the finances of many Councils through no fault of their own…it was forced upon them by the Local Government in Sydney. The State Government is still squeezing little towns yet pay huge salaries to General Managers who rarely have the town’s core values front of mind.
For a big event: Who pays the piper?
The bottom line is The Council:
a) They are the first port of call, and the full Council needs to agree to the event. This probably takes time away from other more important Council issues…such as airport maintenance/water supply/road works/fixing bike paths.
b) Discussion needs to find out all about the event and how much Council can afford to throw in to make such event happen.
c) They need to find and set up the specific infrastructure – road closures, stage, temporary fencing, manpower.
d) They need to re-allocate manpower to clean up after the event as, for some unknown reason in this day and age, people seem unable to take their rubbish with them.
e) This manpower is often at the expense of putting other more important issues to the side.
f) If the event is a ticketed event, quite often the Council still needs to subsidise that venue/ticket as the real cost of the performance would be too great to attract the number of tourists to cover the costs, should the real cost be known/charged.
What does an ‘event’ do for the community?
On the plus side: Of course, it provides entertainment, excitement and a gathering together of like-minded people… all good aims in themselves. It might even encourage some people to move to that town.
On the minus side: What does an ‘event’ do for the people in having those events that are not covered by the points above? The unseen costs are:
a) The amount of money that the Council must put in to set up the event.
b) The unaccounted cost of putting up barricades and the signs.
More importantly what does the Council need to do after the event? They have to clean up the venue and the rubbish – which goes to our waste facility – an extra cost against all ratepayers.
Those who financially benefit:
a) the event organisers themselves.
b) the food and accommodation venues.
Now, here are the questions that need to be asked first :
a) If the Council didn’t throw heaps of dollars into the event, would it have taken place?
b) Would the food and accommodation venues’ bottom-line collapse without such an event taking place?
c) Would the workers, who clean up the place, be out of a job should such an event not take place?
With people complaining about the high cost of living at the moment, would:
a) The majority of them to feel the urge to ‘get a high’ in attending such an event?
b) Or indeed, would many of them say “sadly, I can’t go, as I can’t afford it” leaving them with a feeling of inadequacy, or even, heaven forbid…
c) Feel guilty for admitting to being unable to afford to go.
Don’t get me wrong. Good cafes are now a given. But so many? Take-away foods? Meh! With the cost of living, take-away foods are expensive and lead to greater obesity, sickness, and a greater dependency on doctors – a dying breed, excuse the pun – in this area.
The Armidale Autumn Festival does attract some tourists, but a fly-over? I beg your pardon? Uralla’s Lantern Festival is enjoyed by many and free of charge as well. The costs of the clean-ups for both, I suspect, are minimal.
What I’m asking is: Is the Tourist Dollar the Holy Grail? How about liveability?
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