2022-07-21 Ordinary Meeting Agenda

ORDINARY MEETING AGENDA                                                                    21 JULY 2022


tourism opportunities and improves participation outcomes’.
In 2021, Council completed the Noosa Regional Gallery Pre-feasibility Study Stage 1. This report
found that the Gallery no longer meets the necessary standards or community expectations of a
contemporary gallery and that it would continue to decline in terms of audience attendance and the
ability to secure high quality exhibitions unless its deficiencies were addressed. This was based on
the comprehensive review of local, state and federal strategic cultural and economic planning
priorities, an audit of Noosa Regional Gallery facility and service strengths and challenges, the local
and regional gallery market, benchmarking with other cultural facilities, research on the value and
benefits of arts and culture, gallery industry and tourism trends and review of previous Noosa
Regional Gallery consultation.
Council has now moved to the Pre-feasibility Study Stage 2 which is formally reviewing the options
to sustain a relevant and purposeful Noosa Regional Gallery into the future: either to develop a new
gallery on the existing site or design and construct a new bespoke gallery on an alternative site.
Stage 2 includes community consultation and detailed options analysis.
2.     Site Visits
In considering the options for the future of the Gallery, Council is considering a range of models in
terms of size, scale, focus and audience. Importantly Council is seeking to develop a new gallery
which is the right fit for Noosa for both local residents and the tourists and is sustainable into the
future. As part of this, Council will need to consider the risks and opportunities that a new gallery
may bring.
To assist with this process, Council staff and Councillors will be conducting site visits of two regional
galleries: HOTA (Home of the Arts) on the Gold Coast and the Tweed Regional Gallery & Margaret
Olley Art Centre in Murwillumbah. These galleries are both high quality contemporary galleries with
very successful track records but they are vastly different in their scale, approach and offering. The
site visits will help us understand the different aspects required for a successful modern galley, the
reasons why the Noosa Gallery is falling behind, the importance of making considered decisions
based on Noosa’s strategic priorities, the need for market differentiation that is aligned to local values
and brand, the realistic operational costs of a new gallery and potential revenue offsets.
Each site visit will incorporate tours of the public exhibition, programming and commercial spaces,
back of house tours to see storage, preparation and office accommodation requirements and
discussions with key gallery staff.
It is likely that the total time required will be at least fourteen and a half hours - each site visit will
take a minimum of three hours, the travel time there and back is approximately seven and half hours
provided there are no delays and at least one hour needs to be allowed for meals and convenience
breaks. Staff have therefore recommended that the site visits be undertaken over two days to allow
for safe travel and adequate time to visit each facility.
The site visits are proposed for Tuesday 16 August and Wednesday 17 August.
Previous Council Consideration
Nil.
Finance
The costs associated with the site visit include vehicle costs, overnight accommodation and meals.
Staff are proposing that apartment accommodation be secured to minimise the cost. It is anticipated
that the total cost will be approximately $1,600 for 8 attendees. It is proposed that the cost of the site
visits be met by the Galleries’ Pre-feasibility Study budget, in line with other study costs.
As these site visits are an integral part of the process to determine the new direction for the Regional
Gallery, it is proposed that the travel costs be funded by Council for Councillors and employees.
Council’s Policy, Councillors’ Expenses Reimbursement And Provision Of Facilities, allows for the
funding of travel expenses for Councillors where it is for Council business and reasonable in the
conduct of their duties.

                                                                                           Page 25 of 30