2014-08-25 General Committee Agenda

GENERAL COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                                                   25 AUGUST 2014


1.    INTRODUCTION

Over recent years there has been discussion within Council and the Cooroy Chamber of
Commerce about the economic benefits of achieving “RV Friendly Town” status for Cooroy. The
idea also has the support of the Campervan & Motorhome Club of Australia (CMCA). A “RV
Friendly Town” is one that happily provides amenities and services for the mobile traveller either
at a low set fee, gold coin donation, or for free.

To register as a CMCA “RV Friendly Town” the minimum essential criteria is:
   Provision of appropriate day time parking within the town centre, including access to
     general shopping areas, groceries or fresh produce.
   Provision of short term overnight (24/48 hour) parking for self-contained vehicles within the
     town centre precinct.
   Access to potable water
   Access to a free black & grey water dump point and general waste disposal facilities within
     the town precinct.

Desirable criteria include appropriate signage and access to facilities such as medical services,
visitor information and the like.

The caravan, motorhome and camping industry is reported to be the fastest growing domestic
tourism sector in Australia and has been for each of the last 10 years (source: Caravan and
Camping Tourism Association of NSW Annual report 2012). There is a growing trend within
communities across Australia to cater for the fully self-contained vehicle part of the market as
they do not need access to the full range of amenities provided by traditional caravan parks.

The focus for this report is “self-contained” RV’s only. A self-contained RV has own on board
sleeping, cooking facilities, toilet, shower and drinking water and the ability to carry its own toilet
waste (black waste) and grey water (from shower/sink). Many vehicles also have own on board
power (usually solar/batteries) as an alternative to 240 volt.

2.    SITE ASSESSMENT – RV STOPOVER

The CMCA have indicated an RV overnight park site should ideally be located on land:
   That is flood free;
   Has a flat surface either hardened or grassed;
   Able to accommodate big rigs such as buses towing a trailer;
   Able to drive through (turning around is an issue for big rigs);
   That is well sign posted; and
   That is within the town limit.

If catering to self-contained RVs only, there is no need to provide access to toilets or showers but
a dump point is required for disposal of sewage (toilet or black waste), accumulated grey water
and general waste as well as access to a potable water supply.

2.1   Site Options

Fifteen (15) sites have been examined as having potential for a Cooroy RV Stopover. Details of
each site, its location, constraints and advantages are provided at Attachment A. All sites have
constraints ranging from periodic flooding, vegetation, existing uses, potential for infrequent
odour from the sewerage treatment plant, or inadequate site access.




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