Annual Report 2019-20

          Noosa Shire Council                                                                                                                                                             2019 - 20 Annual Report



  Message from                                                                                             Council’s response to the pandemic was multi-layered. We convened a Business Roundtable to focus
                                                                                                           on support for our business community. The Business Roundtable structured their response around
  the Chief Executive Officer                                                                              three themes:
                                                                                                           1. Survive – keeping businesses going through the height of the pandemic;
  Welcome to the 2019/20 Annual Report.                                                                    2.	Revive - managing the opening up phase to ensure both public safety and business continuity; and
                                                                                                           3. Thrive – planning for what the new business world will look like and ensuring that Noosa will retain
  What a year it has been! Who would have thought that
                                                                                                           its prominent position as an iconic locality.
  when the 2019/20 financial year kicked off, we would have
  faced not one but two major disaster events in the space                                                 We also provided significant support to the community sector including:
  of only a few months.                                                                                    1. Providing some council staff to support critical not-for-profit groups;
                                                                                                           2. Providing additional community grants; and
  It’s been many years since Noosa faced such a significant
                                                                                                           3. Coordinating practical support such as cleaning equipment for community organisations.
  bushfire emergency like what transpired in the second
  half of 2019. Firstly, the major fire emergency at Peregian                                              The economic and social impacts of this pandemic will be felt for years to come. Council will be
  Beach triggered mass evacuations and a well-coordinated                                                  working hand-in-hand with our community to ameliorate those impacts as much as we can. Council
  response by emergency services. In rapid succession, emergency evacuation centres were opened            also has to focus on the impact of the pandemic on its own operations with new business practices
  by Council and Queensland Police, and Queensland Fire and Emergency Services worked tirelessly to        to ensure community and staff safety as well as recovering from the financial impacts on the Council’s
  ensure that all of our residents were safe and that properties were protected as the fire advanced. As   bottom line.
  residents returned to their homes, they were amazed to see how close the fires came to property, but     Of course, while fires and pandemics grab the headlines, every day our Council continued to provide
  that properties were saved due to the brave work by emergency services.                                  day-to-day services to the community. Rubbish bins were emptied, parks were mown, library books
  Unfortunately, the Peregian Beach fire was just an early indicator of what was to come during the        were borrowed, roads were resealed, town planning applications were approved etc. The business
  remainder of that 2019 fire season. Another fire at Peregian Beach and then a major fire on the          of providing services to our community doesn’t stop for anything.
  Noosa North Shore both caused significant issues. And then, of course, came the Cooroibah fire with      And finally, the other defining local government event for 2019/20 was the March 2020 local council
  more than 8000 people evacuated in record time. Again, Council played a critical part in operating       elections. Undertaken against the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic, the election saw changes
  evacuation centres to keep our community safe and once again, Queensland Police and Queensland           at the elected member level. I would like to thank outgoing Mayor Tony Wellington and Councillors
  Fire and Emergency Services together with their supporting agencies did a magnificent job in             for their support and guidance over previous years and welcome incoming Mayor Clare Stewart and
  protecting lives and property.                                                                           Councillors and look forward to working with them in the coming years.
  In times of crisis, we see the best of a community with the Noosa community rallying to assist those     Perhaps more than any other year, I have never been more proud of the work by our Council staff in
  displaced by the fires and an outpouring of support for emergency services. As a community, we           such challenging times. Every day, I see our staff going above and beyond to help our community and
  managed this crisis well but support doesn’t stop when the fires are put out. Council is continuing      I know that in challenging times like bushfires and pandemics, our staff always rise to the occasion.
  to assist those affected by fires with bushfire recovery programs replacing damaged community            In the past 12 months, I have seen staff sleeping overnight on the floor of the library to look after
  infrastructure, providing social support to those impacted and helping local communities to become       elderly people evacuated from their homes during the fires. I have seen staff personally donating
  “fire ready” for future events.                                                                          food, cooking meals and delivering over 4000 meals to people in need during the pandemic. I have
  Throughout the fire emergencies, Council’s Disaster Management and Disaster Recovery teams have          seen staff volunteer to work through the night in the Disaster Management Centre to help coordinate
  played a central role in protecting, informing and supporting our affected communities. Behind the       the safety of our community during the fires. I have seen staff visiting individual businesses to help
  scenes, Council was operating 24/7 during the disasters assisting with the coordination between          them implement Covid-safe practices so they could reopen for business. Our community is lucky to
  emergency agencies but we were also on the ground after the event providing practical and                have such dedicated Council staff.
  emotional support to those affected.                                                                     Staff have a commitment and passion for Noosa. They enjoy the fact that when they drive home at the
  Our community owes our emergency services personnel a debt of gratitude for their work during the        end of the day, they can see where they made a difference to the community that they live in. That’s
  2019 bushfires. Their professionalism, dedication and heroics should never be forgotten.                 why they go the extra mile to get things done.
  We had barely got over the 2019 bushfires when news began to emerge of a virus from China that           Both as a community and Council, we are lucky to have that level of commitment and I want to thank
  might have some health risks if it spread - and spread it did. The emergence of Covid-19 was the         each and every one of our Council staff for their commitment and dedication over the last 12 months.
  second major impact on the Noosa community (and indeed the world) in 2019/20.
                                                                                                           I hope you enjoy reading this annual report.
  Who would have thought that we would see businesses across the Shire shut down, most major
  Council facilities closed and the local economy contract by almost 12% in a matter of months? As a
  major tourist destination, Noosa was affected more than most from the travel restrictions associated
  with the pandemic. It was eerie seeing iconic high profile tourism destinations like Hastings Street
  virtually empty during the height of the pandemic.
                                                                                                           Brett de Chastel
                                                                                                           Chief Executive Officer

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