2021-06-16 Special Meeting Agenda

SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA                                                                    16 JUNE 2021


Submission Topic   Detail
                   Short Term Accommodation costs: No cross subsidy

                   Council estimates there are 5000 dwellings available for Short Term Accommodation.
                   From published data it would seem that about 1000 of these are paying Council’s
                   Economic Development and Tourism Levy. Extrapolating from available data suggests
                   Council is foregoing at least $3m in revenue because of this levy collection failure.
                   Continuation of a Council grant to Tourism Noosa implies a cross-subsidy from
                   property owners not benefitting from STA income to those that are. This is unfair.

                   So it is with satisfaction that we note council’s intention to require owners of properties
                   available for STA to be levied - presumably to address this shortfall and to recover
                   other additional administration and garbage collection costs these properties are
                   incurring. While satisfied with the principle you are proposing to address, we are not
                   satisfied with the proposed quantum. Using rates advertised on Air BnB for a Mitti St
                   property suggests the levy you are proposing amounts to about one night’s
                   accommodation/year - a paltry cost against the revenue being generated by this
                   commercial venture.

                   We want the council to achieve full recovery of STA administration and regulation costs
                   from the owners of the dwellings being used for STA. There should be no cross-subsidy
                   from the rest of Noosa’s residents.

                   To allow STA growth to continue at its present rate will produce fundamental changes
                   to Noosa, converting it from a thriving permanent community to a hollowed out tourist
                   destination for ort term renters. An increase in costs has the opportunity of causing
                   Investors to adjust their ambitions in this regard.

                   Tourism Noosa

                   We applaud the proposed reduction to Tourism Noosa’s annual Council grant, and
                   encourage further and deeper reviews of rate-payer support for it. Tourism Noosa, and
                   other business lobby groups, promote the misleading notion that Noosa is exclusively
                   dependent on tourism.

                   Revenue: According to the National Institute for Economic and Industry Research
                   (NIEIR) Noosa’s total tourism revenue is declining.

                   Value added: Looked at another way, tourism’s value-added contribution to the Noosa
                   economy, although significant at $165.1m, ranked 6th. The health sector delivered the
                   greatest value-added contribution with growth exceeding 40%.

                   Statistics show that Noosa Council’s economic diversification plans are working. While
                   tourism has ‘flat lined’ pre-Covid, the Noosa economy outperformed the State and SE
                   Qld on key economic indicators over the previous five years

                   Over the past decade ‘natural growth’ in tourism has been strong with a 58% increase
                   in day trippers. This will continue regardless of promotional spend, and probably
                   accelerate. Tourism Noosa’s operating budget is about $3.3m; that is about $60/Noosa
                   resident/year. The Gold Coast spends less than half that, and the Sunshine Coast
                   about a quarter. Tourism results in Noosa are mixed with 27% growth in domestic
                   tourist numbers over the five years to 2018, but a 3% decline in international visitor
                   numbers. Yield is down. Visitors appear to have tightened their wallets and average
                   spend per visitor has fallen.

                   To cut funding for Tourism Noosa is a pragmatic response. Not only does it recognise
                   the reduced contribution of tourism to GRP, but it also recognises the issues of traffic
                   congestion that must be addressed before more tourists (particularly day trippers) are
                   drawn to this area.



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