Services & Organisation Committee Meeting - August 2023
Date: Tuesday, 8 August 2023 at 1:30PM
Location: Noosa Shire Council Chambers , 9 Pelican Street , Tewantin , QLD 4565 , Australia
Organiser: Noosa Shire Council
Duration: 00:38:17
Synopsis: Capital program and resourcing shortfalls reviewed, Asset data gaps prioritised, Holiday Parks strong results and surplus use unresolved, Governance and sustainability updates, Meeting rescheduling to Oct.
Meeting Attendees
Committee Members
Amelia Lorentson Joe Jurisevic Clare Stewart Frank Wilkie Non-Committee Members
Executive Officers
Acting Chief Executive Officer Larry Sengstock Director Infrastructure Services Shaun Walsh AI-Generated Meeting Insight
Key Decisions & Discussions Larry Sengstock: Sought and received unanimous support to defer October General Committee and Ordinary Meeting dates due to LGAQ Conference attendance; new dates 23 and 26 Oct (Item 5.1) (01:57; 5.1). Amelia Lorentson: Managed proceedings and confirmed no deputations; all items carried unanimously (opening; Items 5–6). Melissa Sheppard: Reported 2022/23 Capital Program budget $54.1m with 79% expenditure to 30 June; Infrastructure Services controlled ~$49m, ICT/fleet ~$4.3m (04:15; 6.1). Melissa Sheppard: Clarified road reseal budget is $6.8m with $6.2m spent; corrected internal inconsistencies between pages (04:15–06:16; 6.1). Shaun Walsh: Noted carryover projects and uncertainties tied to resourcing and community consultation around election timelines; detailed briefing scheduled (06:51; 6.1). Shaun Walsh: Identified asset data confidence strong for roads/paths and improving for stormwater, but weak for parks/buildings; prioritising comprehensive asset management (07:55–09:10; 6.1). Shaun Walsh: Stated Infrastructure Planning/Design/Delivery resourcing runs ~2.7% of CWP vs ~5% industry standard; two critical vacancies (design coordinator, transport/traffic) being filled/reclassified (10:55–13:54; 6.1). Shaun Walsh: Committed to provide multi-year data on emergent works value and impacts; consider dedicated emergent-works budget line (15:35–15:54; 6.1). Shaun Walsh: Tender prices generally fixed to expected delivery within ~12 months; procurement specifics to be confirmed by procurement team as needed (16:13–16:41; 6.1). Melissa Sheppard: Strengthening Project Initiation Documents to evidence cost-estimate provenance and recent validation; regular “lessons learned” across large projects (18:02–19:39; 6.1). Robyn Mercer: Holiday Parks delivered $4.2m revenue (+$480k, +12.7%), $1.2m operational surplus (beat budget by ~$470k), 61,219 visitors and 83,240 nights; forward bookings $2.5m (20:53–24:59; 6.2). Robyn Mercer: Reported $25m GDP contribution and 202 FTE using Caravan Industry Association input-output model; Noosa parks performing at top end regionally (25:40–26:47; 6.2). Robyn Mercer: TripAdvisor Travellers’ Choice awards for all three parks; integrated facilities management improved presentation, reduced complaints, and lifted returns (31:40–33:17; 6.2). Robyn Mercer: Metered power heads installed at Noosa River but charging not yet implemented; exploring price/incentive mechanisms to curb electricity/water use (28:34–29:45; 6.2). Robyn Mercer: Considering cabins at Boreen Point subject to comparative analysis of price point vs occupancy; RV market currently served by Cooroy stopovers and self-contained caravans at parks (33:24–37:06; 6.2). Contentious / Transparency Matters Recording accuracy: Transcript shows Brian Stockwell actively questioning and commenting, but minutes list only Cr Wegener as non-committee attendee; ensure attendance records reconcile (07:17–35:18; Minutes 1. Attendance). Report integrity: Internal inconsistencies in reseal program budget/expenditure were acknowledged and corrected on record; underscores need for tighter version control (04:15–06:16; 6.1). Remote participation: Tom Wegener flagged intent to Zoom into an Ordinary Meeting while overseas; clarity needed on permissible participation/voting rules (02:59–03:57; Item 5.1 context). Use of surplus: Holiday Parks surplus destination unclear; suggestion it offsets general rates was discussed but not confirmed—finance to clarify (30:12–31:04; 6.2). Economic impact claims: GDP/FTE figures derived from industry calculator; appropriate for advocacy but should be contextualised as modelled impacts, not direct employment (25:40–26:26; 6.2). Legal / Risk Meeting rescheduling: Acting CEO stated changes are permitted under standing orders; ensure publication and statutory notice requirements under the Local Government Regulation 2012 are met (01:57–02:55; 5.1). Participation by audio-visual link: If councillors attend remotely, confirm compliance with Council’s Meeting Procedures and Queensland legislative settings on quorum, decision-making, and public access (02:59–03:57). Procurement/tender validity: Fixed pricing tied to delivery windows mitigates escalation risk; ensure contract conditions address CPI/escalation and supply-chain volatility (16:13–16:41; 6.1). Asset risk: Gaps in condition data for parks/buildings elevate failure/emergent works risk; prioritise asset management plans and lifecycle funding to meet s.104 LGA principles of sound asset management (07:55–09:10; 6.1). Resourcing adequacy: Delivery team at ~2.7% of program vs ~5% industry poses delivery risk and potential probity pressure; role reclassification and recruitment are mitigating steps (10:55–13:54; 6.1). Holiday Parks: Performance, Strategy, Revenue Use Robyn Mercer: Strong operator performance and integrated management credited for revenue/surplus growth and elevated brand/visitor experience (22:53–23:56; 6.2). Frank Wilkie/Brian Stockwell: Discussed whether $1.2m surplus contributes to general fund and offsets rates; formal position to be confirmed by finance (30:12–31:04; 6.2). Joe Jurisevic: Sought benchmarking against other councils; advised Noosa is at the top end for visitation/occupancy with product differentiation across parks (26:26–27:26; 6.2). Sustainability levers: Considering metered charging/incentives to curb energy/water use and guest behaviours (28:34–29:45; 6.2). Growth options: Exploring cabins at Boreen Point and broader expansion opportunities; RV market currently deemed sufficiently served (33:24–37:06; 6.2). Capital Program Delivery, Asset Management & Emergent Works Road reseals: $6.2m delivered of $6.8m; savings linked to David Low Way emergent funding coming in under budget, not under-delivery (09:10–10:34; 6.1). Pricing rigour: PID enhancements will require recent estimates (e.g., QS) and CPI allowances, reducing reliance on outdated figures (18:02–19:28; 6.1). Emergent works planning: Multi-year quantification requested to inform potential dedicated budget allocation, smoothing delivery and resourcing (15:35–15:54; 6.1). Talent strategy: Near-final hire of a design coordinator with strong precinct/architecture background; transport/traffic coordinator to be reclassified to attract candidates (12:27–13:54; 6.1). Environmental & ESG Considerations Holiday Parks ESG: Next focus is reducing electricity/water usage through metering, pricing, and incentives without dampening visitation (28:34–29:45; 6.2). Operational efficiency: Centralised facilities management has improved asset presentation and reduced complaints, supporting environmental and economic outcomes (32:32–33:17; 6.2).
Official Meeting Minutes
MINUTES Services & Organisation Committee Meeting Tuesday, 8 August 2023 1:30 PM Council Chambers, 9 Pelican Street, Tewantin Committee: Crs Amelia Lorentson (Chair), Joe Jurisevic , Clare Stewart, Frank Wilkie “Noosa Shire – different by nature” SERVICES & ORGANISATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES 8 AUGUST 2023 1. ATTENDANCE & APOLOGIES COMMITTEE MEMBERS Councillor Amelia Lorentson (Chair) Councillor Joe Jurisevic Councillor Clare Stewart Councillor Frank Wilkie NON COMMITTEE MEMBERS Councillor Tom Wegener EXECUTIVE Acting Chief Executive Officer Larry Sengstock Acting Director Infrastructure Services Shaun Walsh APOLOGIES Nil 2. CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES Committee Resolution Moved: Cr Joe Jurisevic Seconded: Cr Frank Wilkie The Minutes of the Services & Organisation Committee Meeting held on 11 July 2023 be received and confirmed. Carried unanimously. 3. PRESENTATIONS Nil 4. DEPUTATIONS Nil 5. REPORTS FOR CONSIDERATION OF THE COMMITTEE 5.1. AMENDMENT OF GENERAL COMMITTEE & ORDINARY MEETING DATES OCTOBER 2023 Committee Recommendation Moved: Cr Joe Jurisevic Seconded: Cr Frank Wilkie SERVICES & ORGANISATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES 8 AUGUST 2023 That Council note the report by the Chief Executive Officer (Acting) to the Services & Organisation Committee Meeting dated 8 August 2023 and request the Chief Executive Officer: A. Defer the date of the General Committee from 16 October 2023 to 23 October 2023 B. Defer the date of the Ordinary Meeting from 19 October 2023 to 26 October 2023 Carried unanimously. 6. REPORTS FOR NOTING BY THE COMMITTEE 6.1. CAPITAL PROGRAM 2022/23 DELIVERY STATUS Committee Recommendation Moved: Cr Joe Jurisevic Seconded: Cr Clare Stewart That Council note the report by the Infrastructure Planning, Design & Delivery Manager to the Services & Organisation Committee Meeting dated 8 August 2023 providing an update on the delivery of the 2022/2023 Capital Program as at 30 June 2023. Carried unanimously. 6.2. NOOSA HOLIDAY PARKS UPDATE Committee Recommendation Moved: Cr Frank Wilkie Seconded: Cr Clare Stewart That Council note the report by the Property Advisor – Commercial Property to the Services & Organisation Committee Meeting dated 8 August 2023 providing an update on operations of the Noosa Holiday Park Business Activity for the 2022/23 financial year. Carried unanimously. 7. CONFIDENTIAL SESSION Nil 8. MEETING CLOSURE The meeting closed at 2:09 PM
Meeting Transcript
Amelia Lorentson 00:03.560
Good afternoon and welcome to the Services & Organisation Committee Meeting today, Tuesday August 8th, I declare the meeting open. I first want to begin by an acknowledgement to country. I would like to respectfully acknowledge the Kabi Kabi people as the traditional custodians of the lands and waters that form the region we call Noosa. Council pays respect to elders past, present and future and welcomes the ongoing role that the indigenous people play within the Noosa community. Start by attendance and apologies. We have no apologies Councillor Jurisevic, welcome. Councillor Wilkie, welcome. Mayor Stewart, welcome. I note Councillor Tom Wegener is in attendance in the gallery and that Councillor Finzel is absent. Can I please before commencing the meeting that everyone has their phones on silent or turned off. Start with confirmation of minutes. Can I have a mover? Thank you, Councillor Jurisevic and and a seconder please. Thank you Councillor Wilkie. No discussion or in favour? Thank you. We'll now go to presentations and deputations. There are no presentations and there are no deputations. Reports for consideration of the committee. We'll move to item number five. Item number 5.1, amendment of general committee and ordinary meeting dates, October 2023. And I'll refer this to Acting CEO, Larry Sengstock, welcome. Can you please give us an overview of the report in advance? Larry Sengstock 01:57.941
Look, this is just a request to change the date of a meeting for our next round, given that a number of us, including myself, will be attending the LGAQ conference in Gladstone. It's a very important conference. I think it's something that we get a lot from in terms of a council and being part of that. So it coincides it's in October. So we're looking to defer the date of the general committee meeting from the 16th of October to the 23rd. And then the ordinary meeting which backs onto that from the 19th, defer that to the to the 26th. So the dates would be 23 and 26 October. So it's really just a formal or formality in terms of we're able to do this. It's within our standing orders to do it. And so we're just requesting that we have that put in process. Amelia Lorentson 02:55.634
Thanks, Larry. Amelia Lorentson 02:59.674
Excuse me. We have a question in... Oh, sorry, Tom. That was... Can we... I'm not going to change anything, but I just... It's just so ironic that... I booked my holiday to Mexico leaving... 23rd. So it's okay, because the majority of rules, again, you guys, are definitely more important, and I'll still be able to zoom into the ordinary meeting on Thursday, if at all possible, but it'll be a very awkward thank you, Councillor Wegener. We'll now move on to number six, reports for noting by the committee. 6.1, capital program 2022/23, delivery status. And a welcome to the desk, our wonderful staff. Shaun Walsh 03:57.978
I'd like to introduce Melissa Sheppard, who's our infrastructure planning officer.
[Amelia Lorentson: 04:05] Thank you, Shaun, because I had a bit of a blank as you could tell, so I appreciate that. And I'm going to actually ask Melissa to present this report and answer Melissa Sheppard 04:15.285
No worries, so I'll just provide a summary on the report to start off with. So the status update of the capital works program as at the 30th of June 2023 reports on our spend of the 22-23 financial year budget for the capital works program which was fifty four point one million forty nine of that was in direct control of the infrastructure services team and the remaining four point three consists of different ICT projects and fleet management as at the 30th of June 2023 we had expended seventy nine percent of that budget the road reseal program have has expended six point two million of the six point eight million dollar budget for the financial year also the design services team continued to support 56 different projects and their own design services projects for implementation with their design and construction value of approximately sixteen point seven million and the planning team key master plan initiatives with an estimated future project investment value of 15 million plus on top of that I would just like to clarify an inconsistency that has been noted within the report so on So, on the front page, point four of the executive summary, the road reseal budget states $6.8 million, which is correct, but on page three, roughly halfway down the page, it states a $5.7 million budget. So, just to clarify that inconsistency and apologies for that, but the statement on the first page in point four is correct at $6.8 million. Shaun Walsh 05:52.439
I think you noted that when this report when this report was drafted the expenditure amount was $5.9 million, but that's now been since corrected in the financials to actually be $6.2 million of the $6.8 million budget. That's correct. The other inconsistency there though is that it says the budget was $5.7 million in one page and it was $6.8 million in the other page. Yes, that's correct. Melissa Sheppard 06:16.450
So, $6.8 million is the correct budget value. And on page 12, just talking about inconsistency percentage of CWP, that's at such a 101%. Okay, no worries. Tom Wegener 06:29.480
We get extra here. Amelia Lorentson 06:31.240
No, that's great. 19.1% inconsistency. They're overachieving again. Joe Jurisevic 06:37.720
I'm going to throw it to the table. Councillors, do you have any questions, please? Most significant projects that we've got on the agenda that will be carried over as a result of this? Shaun Walsh 06:51.371
Yes, we've scheduled a workshop or a briefing with you on Thursday this week to go through through the projects which have been carried over and the new projects and to give confidence with the projects that we think we can deliver. There's some uncertainties about the program moving forward due to both resources and also consultation programs. In and around the election dates that we just want to ensure the councillors are fully across. Thank you. Brian Stockwell 07:17.797
Thank you for the excellent report. Question around the emergent works that occur during the 2022-23 financial year. There's a detailed list there. But I'm wondering is the, what strategies you've got in place to help avoid having so Does the increased asset condition reporting include a more detailed componentisation of assets? Help us better plan for these to get in front of these issues before they emerge. Shaun Walsh 07:55.430
Yeah, certainly. Every asset should have a program maintenance period and an end of life you know, expectation date. And that sets up scheduled renewal maintenance programming, and then also sets up expectations of when you actually replace the asset. And the more we get to know about our assets, and from the presentation we had from Brian O 'Connor last week to Councillor, you know, that's so that that we have confidence with our roads and pathway assets, we have confidence or increasing confidence with our stormwater assets, but we don't have much confidence with our park assets nor our building and facilities assets, and then the next priority. So that's the first thing. So ideally, we would have a very comprehensive asset management plan and we can forecast that in coming years there'll be a lot more accuracy with those asset classes, but then we have to remember that there's always things that can go wrong, you know, whether it's a disaster and, you know, usually they're funded by other agencies, but sometimes we do have to pick up the bill, and also assets don't always perform to their, you know, expected end of life. You know, we've all bought a refrigerator, some appliance, which is, you know, meant to last for five years, or ten years, and it's broken down after two. So, you know, I can't guarantee that there will always be, you know, no emerging asset things, but certainly a better investment in our asset management system. Brian Stockwell 09:10.813
Other question was about the $6.2 million expenditure of the $6.8 million re-sealed program. This is really a proactive really a proactive program, isn't it? So it's not to say that there's $600,000 worth of trouble out there, but the roads are still in pretty good condition. Are any roads suffering as I can clarify that one slightly. So the increase in the budget from the 5.7 that was documented on page 3 was in regard to the David Low Way works, which did come through council as emergent funding, that work came in significantly less than what it was budgeted for. So there was a short, there was sorry, a savings made on that additional budget that we had applied for. there was a bit of a savings there which wasn't allocated to a project that didn't progress but instead I suppose a good news story that we were able to undertake the works a little bit. So you're not trying to take, the schedule works for less, just the It's not an indication of under delivery of the planned works. It's a saving. That's a very important distinction. Well done. Amelia Lorentson 10:34.952
Just in terms of human resource capability, I note on page 14, there's reference to staffing shortages, construction market. Do we have Do we have currently the capability to manage all these projects and tenders? Shaun Walsh 10:55.895
So that would be the subject of a Council briefing on Thursday to give Council a lot more information about our current resourcing model. Some of the challenges we an example which would be subject to a full briefing to Council on Thursday is that our resourcing model runs at about 2.7% of the capital works program whereas the industry standard is about five. So we're actually not, and when you look at the forecast of the program moving forward, particularly with waste on board, but we're more than likely under-resourced. So, and if you look at the extent of delivery with our resources, we're actually hitting well above the mark. Our ratepayers are actually getting very, very good value. terms of the programs we're delivering with available resources. So, that's the first area. The other one is about attracting suitable talent that actually is up to the challenges of the projects that are up to. Increasingly, these projects Increasingly, these projects which are retrofitting into existing areas of Noosa, whether it's Noosa River foreshore infrastructure or Noosa Junction streetscape, are really complex, even if we're in Brisbane or Sydney, these are very, very complex projects and we need to ensure that we've got the right talent to actually lead those. We've got two current critical vacancies within infrastructure planning, design and delivery, which is the design coordinator role and also transport and traffic coordination, which leads such things as the parking study and the transport strategy. So we need to make sure that we've recruited a key talent in those roles to actually confidently lead the programs. Amelia Lorentson 12:21.890
In terms of recruitment, do we outsource that or is that done in-house? Shaun Walsh 12:27.010
We deal with it in-house, supported by HR business support. I find the recruitment processes here to be quite efficient. don't find them to be a hindrance. I've used external consultants in the past and you've got to remember that usually you'd use external consultants for director or CEO levels. At this manager or coordinator level, the internal support to get the right talent is more than sufficient to get the right talent. We're in final negotiations with a candidate for the design coordinator position. I've just got one final referee check to perform. candidate is quite a different skill set to what we've done previously, it's actually an architect who actually specialises in precinct development and also a very large commercial property sector background, so in terms of that sort of talent mix, working with stakeholders of places like Noosa Heads and Noosa Junction should be a really, really good fit. And used to coordinating all the different disciplines of civil design, may I say architect. know, planners to actually deliver a cohesive policy. uptick. We're reporting for or sort of sourcing a different talent mix to deal with the challenges moving forward. The transport and traffic coordinator, that's a very highly contested. contested skill set at the moment. And you'll note that we're regularly losing staff to TMR, who are trying to resource up their skill sets. So for that role, we're actually working with our HR department to have a role reclassification to offer a high level remuneration. to offer a high level remuneration and hopefully go out to market because our current recruitment process did not bring forward any candidates that could actually achieve the job. It's so commendable. So we've just been proactive in that space, broadening the criteria to just open up just a new town. I think it just gets back to ensuring that we've got the right people to lead our community through these quite interesting and challenging design exercises. Amelia Lorentson 14:22.170
Any questions? Joe Jurisevic 14:24.470
Thank you. for your support. report, having the emergent works of the financial year listed in this way, I think is something we haven't really seen before. I think it's an important distinction to have that there and make us aware of the level of level of emergent works that pop up through the year and that obviously has an impact on resourcing capacity to function and deliver on the anticipated capital works program that we started at the beginning of the budget process. I'm interested to know the value of those emergent works for the workshops coming up. Just as a total but also as a percentage of the original program. How that impacts How that impacts, and maybe look back for a couple of years and see how much impact Emergent Works have had, and maybe get a dollar value or a percentage of the original program, and maybe look at our budgeting in the future as having an Emergent Works allocation. Sitting there ready to go, being part of the overall capital works program, but helping to take that impact off staff, perhaps recognising that we're going to have Emergent Works coming up, we need to be resourced and ready for it. It's only thought process. Shaun Walsh 15:35.853
I'd be happy to take that request for information on notice, councillor, and distribute it to the councillors. I think it would be a bit of a start going back for a few years to see what the Emergent Works have popped up and what the impact on the capital works program have been. I think that would better inform us as to how we go forward. We'll take that on notice and distribute that information to the councillors. Amelia Lorentson 15:54.280
I have a question in terms of tender submissions, a little bit of a broader question. When we go out to tender, do we request prices for six months, 12 months, 18 months, how does that work? Shaun Walsh 16:13.447
So when we go out to tender, we do ask for a time period that the relevancy of the price, which matches when we expect the project to be delivered by. It can vary a little bit, and I probably prefer if I had someone from the procurement team answer the question specifically, but there is a forecast that actually assumes that the works will be completed within 12 months, and the guaranteed price has to be delivered within that program. So it's a fixed price for that length of time. Amelia Lorentson 16:41.590
And in terms of deep dives, is there any habitat to have a look at? Looking at what's happened Shaun Walsh 17:39.521
Then second to that, we actually had a workshop this morning about the project bid process for the next financial year and also for Intermittent Works and actually we want a whole new field whereby the project initiators actually describe how they've actually come up with the project cost estimates and what sort of allowances they've made for. Do you want to talk more about that Mel, about what we were talking about? Melissa Sheppard 18:02.781
Yeah, absolutely. So the current PID has a detailed cost breakdown in regard to internal and external costs but it doesn't provide the initiator the ability to describe where the costs have been obtained, whether they have consulted with different people within the council such as building and facilities or plumbing. like that to gain a realistic cost estimate and providing that ability to describe where the pricing has come from and give managers and directors also reassurance to sign off on the project brief to know that they've done that. legwork I think will also help and be an opportunity to look back on potential missing items previously that's taken place where we can improve moving forward. Shaun Walsh 18:47.509
So it really flags the directors and then you know council that will put its project initiation but there's a field that says this was a this is pricing in 2018 well that's a flag for all of us that that is an inappropriate pricing mechanism you know ideally that that field should say this is based on quantity survey estimates obtained last month you know so with a an allowance factor you know that assumes you know two years of CPI blah blah so so it gives you confidence that the budget sum is appropriate Joe Jurisevic 19:18.271
If we've got a design that's been in the drawer for a few years, we should then revise estimates of the cost of that project at today's costings, not at the foot of the drawer. Shaun Walsh 19:28.662
There's more scrutiny that you know someone's just just not writing a figure that they've pulled out of an old report a lot more confidence in you know a lot a lot more rigour associated with getting the pricing. Melissa Sheppard 19:39.745
Just to add on that as well Shaun, also the design and delivery teams regularly undertake lessons learned workshops where they sit down and they go through large projects large projects that they've undertaken and completed and reflect on different opportunities where they can improve moving forward as well, so as a group. That's a great discussion. Amelia Lorentson 20:00.048
Thank you. Any more questions on the table before? No. Can I have your legal report? Cancel it. I'll second it. I was just going to second it. No more discussion. All in favour please. Thank you. Mel does all the work. Tom Wegener 20:18.758
Mel does all the work. It's so impressive. Thank you. Larry Sengstock 20:23.478
Thank you. So we're now moving to holiday parks and welcome to the table Well Amelia Lorentson 20:37.757
Mason. Robyn Mercer. Welcome Robyn. Can I ask if you can just give us a summary of the report. Robyn Mercer 20:53.300
So the report in front of you today is providing an update on the Noosa Holiday Parks program with a period from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023. The report off on financial aspects, business outcomes, operational activities, capital works and the economic impact. Overall the Holiday Parks program has performed really well in the financial year just gone. We achieved a revenue of $4.2 million which was an increase of $480,000 from the previous financial year representing an increase of 12.7%. We We achieved an operational surplus of $1.2 million, exceeding budget expectations by $470,000. The Noosa Holiday Parks are land designated by state for the purpose of caravanning and camping and recreational enjoyment, so it's important that we also measure things like visitation to make sure we're fulfilling that responsibility in the financial In the financial year just gone, we accommodated just over 60,000 visitors representing an overall economic contribution of 25 million to GDP and an employment contribution of over 200 FTE jobs Australia-wide. Looking forward, we have secured forward bookings for the current financial year of 2.5 million already. we've got our eyes on the economy and the health of the economy in terms of people pulling back on discretionary spend but the current position is that I think we're well suited to continue to perform strongly. you, I've got a question. Tom Wegener 22:35.525
What's your secret? I mean these are great numbers, you know, like financially you've increased your revenue increased 23.3%, we've budget expectations by $472,000, I mean what are you doing to get these great numbers? Robyn Mercer 22:53.028
I think we're probably seeing the culmination of three years of work plus a whole lot of before that it's never down to one thing it's been a collective effort so broadly speaking I think we've got a great operator in place so having a strong contractor ultimately with ultimately with this industry what I've learned is that everything is driven by the visitor so the visitors having a good experience and they're paying money then then that's the secret source so what goes into that is making sure that our operations are strong our assets and parks and grounds and pathways look really sharp we've got good rules and governance in place around credits and refunds things like having a pizza van our management operator on the ground delivers a really sharp operation and we've been able to get there through our contractual environment I think it's it's a combination Joe Jurisevic 23:56.265
Congratulations. The return to camping and caravaning. There's definitely been a return to that post COVID so I talk quite frequently with the Industry Association and broadly across Queensland and Australia the industry is certainly Yeah. Thank you. Robyn Mercer 24:13.986
That way. I do know parks and areas where they're not seeing this level of occupancy so I do think we've been able to elevate our product and really create a brand and a destination and a drive tourism destination but definitely but definitely the industry is headed that way. Joe Jurisevic 24:33.790
Yeah, that third paragraph in the summary, it's really caught my eye. 61,219 visitors, not stays. How many nights of stays have we had? Is that something you Robyn Mercer 24:46.301
Can... I think nights stayed is... For some people to stay two nights, three nights a week. Correct. I'm sure I've got that... That'll be a figure to be interesting to say. Year on, year out, how many nights of stays we get in each of those facilities. Overall, the night stage for the financial year spawn were 83,240. Joe Jurisevic 24:59.801
Facilities. So on average, one and a half nights per person, roughly. The other interesting thing there, there. Overall economic contribution of $25 million to GDP and an economic, sorry, employment contribution of 202 full time jobs. Now we wouldn't have employed 202 people full time in three Caribbean camping facilities. Nor would we have generated $25 million in GDP. So how do those, how were those figures generated and how were those, how was that employment contribution cut down? Robyn Mercer 25:40.433
Industry Association of Australia has a research body and they have an online calculator that enables you to put in the number of nights sold and the total revenue and from there they have a background calculation that does input output modelling to say well if you say, well, if you look through the entire supply chain from the point of someone selling a caravan through to the point of someone cleaning an amenity block, if you've got this much visitation and revenue, what's the total value of that through the supply chain? yes formula driven yeah they have a very robust and comprehensive research team for the Australia wide program so that's a GDP that's a gross domestic product contribution contribution. Joe Jurisevic 26:26.319
And now to the number of nights and visitors that we have, how do we compare with other parks around, are we high visitation, low visitation, medium visitation, how do we compare? That would be interesting to see how Noosa is a destination for a caravan camping locale that compares to other locales. Is that something that can be readily? Robyn Mercer 26:47.597
Sure, so a lot of these statistics are driven from the booking system. I know from speaking with my counterpart at Sunshine Coast Council that their parts enjoy a high level of visitation. They run similar to the Noosa River model where you get the sort of four to six week stay so their occupancy is often exceeding 90%. Boreen Point and North Shore are a different product. They're a regional location and they're that and they're that hybrid camping and caravanning destination. I know from talking with counterparts at Fraser Coast or Rockhampton and Livingston that we're performing at the top end. Amelia Lorentson 27:26.499
In terms of localised data, do we have any understanding of the contractual contribution to our own local economy and do you work with Tourism Noosa in scraping that number? Robyn Mercer 27:44.282
Yeah, so there's a couple of the people at Tourism Noosa, I've sat down with their data. so we catch up every now and again and I keep an eye on there as the Noosa holiday parks we have a membership with Tourism Noosa so I jump on and have a look at their statistics. I I think the in terms of our regional contribution the Caravanning Association of Australia did used to have a regional calculator but I think it got difficult for them to input all the background that was unique to each area. Last time that calculator was operational our regional contribution was 15 million. Joe Jurisevic 28:24.068
And yeah one of the questions we're talking about the power heads and being installed. Have we finished installing those yet? Are they in place and working or? Robyn Mercer 28:34.750
Yeah so a couple of years ago we installed metered power heads at the Noosa River Holiday Park with the intent to charge for electricity and drive down consumption influencing it through a price point. COVID sort of stepped in and also focused on other areas of the parks and building them up to get to this point of revenue and surplus. Our next around sustainability. How do we drive down our water usage? How do we drive down our electricity usage? Really taking that ESG look over the whole program and part of that will be how How do we encourage our guests to not leave their aircon on while they go to the beach for five hours and those types of things and one of those mechanisms is to encourage that with a price or might a cost but they also be an incentive mechanism whereby they're incentivized to reduce their usage so there's a couple of drivers that we need to explore there and we'll bring those Joe Jurisevic 29:38.123
I thought we already sourced them. They're installed and they're ready. Robyn Mercer 29:45.906
No because the implementation requires an interaction with our guests as the key stakeholder and we've got to balance that out with visitation appetite for wanting to come to the park so we've we've really had to try and take a balanced approach. I'm comfortable where we've got to as a business operation now that we can take that next step. Frank Wilkie 30:12.069
We look forward to that discussion. Thank you very much. Robin, as this 1.23 million surplus, is it going to general or what? Brian Stockwell 30:20.828
General fund or are you able to, is your department able to handle that for reinvestment back into holiday parks? Robyn Mercer 30:30.148
I would probably defer the detail of that to Trent for an answer. I do know that typically it's been a general rate contribution. I think they might be moving towards that. Yeah, I might leave that with Trent because there may be In that case, that amount accounts for, is the equivalent of that 2.5% rates increase that we didn't need to impose on rate payers. right. So that shows the value to rate payers for real investment in these holiday parks. Absolutely. Brian Stockwell 31:04.633
Not only does it provide an affordable holiday option for families and residents in Noosa Shire, like Like you say, that's the culmination of a lot of great work over many years, moving towards the integrated management model. We've got one operator and a consistent management approach to all three holiday parks. We've got record visitation overall, record returns. What's the significance of the Trip Advisor award that you got there? how What is that? significant is it? Robyn Mercer 31:40.079
Yes, the last year in 2022, all three parks received the Traveller's Choice Award. That's fantastic. Significance, well I guess it's the metric of you're perceived within the consumer industry. So to get an award across all three parks is not something that we'd achieved before. Noosa Rivers always performs strongly in that space, but for me the significance is getting those awards for our regional areas which are maybe not so well known but offer a really unique and wonderful, you know, visit or tourist experience to our region and something different to the main hub. Brian Stockwell 32:18.724
It was really pleasing to receive those and you've you've increased the revenue not only by record visitation but also really environmentally and economically responsible practices in terms of managing your expenditure. Robyn Mercer 32:32.991
Which is fantastic we've been able to drive savings through an integrated facilities model whereby we package up all the works for our facilities management and engage all those activities through a centralized approach so we're able to get value for money resources can be deployed more effectively across a range of activities and it delivers It's driven down customer complaints, it's driven up revenue, it's contributed to the overall look and feel. I know going to the parks now, they just look sharp and well presented. Brian Stockwell 33:17.649
Is it true you may be considering cabins for Boreen Point, or is that just some loose talk? Robyn Mercer 33:24.869
I'm always considering ways of improving the commercial return, but I guess I guess the way up is if you convert a camping site that's say being occupied at 80% and then you invest into a cabin that might have a higher price point but then a lower occupancy because it might just be a weekend really need to do that comparative analysis about where you'll end up and where's the right place to do that. Brian Stockwell 33:53.343
And that'll give you an indication of what people want as well. Robyn Mercer 33:55.923
Correct. Brian Stockwell 33:56.743
Apart from saying this is a report you ought to frame... team player of you. My only question, and it's not a negative, is the only holiday park that has fewer visitors than the previous years is the Noosa River Holiday Park. Is there Do you have any sense of what might be going on there, why the numbers are stronger in other areas, in other parks, and they haven't surpassed their previous levels at that particular venue? Robyn Mercer 34:42.896
So I think in terms of visitor numbers, it can depend on the customer segmentation. So there might be less families where there's four within the So I haven't put occupancy in largely because occupancy is driven by the number of sites and that's changed over time so it's been difficult. been difficult for a true measure. So I would say with Noosa River our revenues are high and the occupancy is high, we just might have less visitors because our visitor groups may not have more couples than families. Joe Jurisevic 35:18.382
I'm sure that's it. Your size might be occupied for the same number if there's four people on a site as opposed to two people on a site with a caravan, based on family, the visitor numbers appear down, but the visitation percentage of occupancy is probably as high if not higher. That's right. Amelia Lorentson 35:35.993
I've got another question before I ask for a new one. In terms of expansion of existing holiday parks and opportunity for new holiday parks, we've already been in discussion about John's Landing. about John's Landing? My question is the RV market. That's a huge market and when you're talking before about cabins and Costa having cabins, RV markets don't have all that, they don't need toilets because the toilets are already built in there. It's a totally different model. Has there been any consideration in exploring opportunities? Robyn Mercer 36:12.962
Yeah so within our region there's two RV stopover parks currently located in Cooroy and one is on council land and it's coordinated by the Chamber of Commerce there. terms of demand for more we're not, I looked at the numbers for Cooroy RV a couple of weeks ago and I think there's more space still to take up more demand if it was needed. It is an interesting space in that they are self-contained. I think we need to remember for example at Boreen Point Campground we do have a lot of caravans that are self-contained themselves and they use their own facilities. So in a way we do have that market it's just not labelled as an RV market. Joe Jurisevic 36:57.948
We've got camping spots and padlock sites and ceiling sites. Robyn Mercer 37:06.618
But in terms of expansion I think we definitely the demand and uptake of our sites is starting to provide a compelling case for expansion into other areas and now building our program into other locations. Amelia Lorentson 37:23.058
Can I have a review of the consultation? Great. Unanimous. Thank you. There's no confidential names to be discussed today. So, I note that this meeting is closed at the time 2:10pm. this past 2:00pm. and the next meeting will be the general meeting next Monday. Thank you, councillors.
[Frank Wilkie: 02:10] Thank you, Madam Chair. Related Noosa Council Meetings
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