Agenda – Late Items

Ordinary Meeting

Monday, 21 October 2019

Time: 9:00am Location: Council Chambers 82 Street BEAUDESERT QLD 4285

All correspondence to Regional Council Beaudesert Administration Centre P: 07 5540 5111 F: 07 5540 5103 be addressed to the PO Box 25 Boonah Administration Centre P: 07 5463 3000 F: 07 5463 2650 Chief Executive Officer BEAUDESERT QLD 4285 E: [email protected] ABN: 45 596 234 931 W: https://www.scenicrim.qld.gov.au/

Ordinary Meeting Agenda – Late Items 21 October 2019

Scenic Rim Regional Council Ordinary Meeting Monday, 21 October 2019 Agenda – Late Items

12 Miscellaneous Business...... 3

12.1 Parliament's Bushfire Appeal Reception ...... 3

12.2 Binna Burra Festival Funding Application ...... 7

Page 2 Ordinary Meeting Agenda – Late Items 21 October 2019

12 Miscellaneous Business

12.1 Queensland Parliament's Bushfire Appeal Reception

Executive Officer: General Manager Customer and Regional Prosperity

Item Author: Manager Regional Prosperity and Communications

Attachments:

1. 2019 Bushfire Appeal Invitation/Flyer ⇩

Executive Summary

Council has received an invitation to attend the Queensland Parliament's Bushfire Appeal Reception, being held at Parliament House in Brisbane at 6pm on Thursday, 24 October 2019.

Recommendation

That Council acknowledge Councillors who are attending the Queensland Parliament's Bushfire Appeal Reception to be held on 24 October 2019 at Parliament House, Brisbane.

Previous Council Considerations / Resolutions

Not applicable.

Report / Background

Council has received an invitation to attend The Queensland Parliament's Bushfire Appeal Reception which is co-hosted by the Honourable MP, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly The Honourable MP, Premier and Minister for Trade and Ms Deb Frecklington MP, Leader of the and Shadow Minster for Trade. Councillors are welcome to attend the Reception.

This event is aiming to raise funds for the Queensland Parliament's Bushfire Appeal, to support members of the broader Queensland community affected by the recent bushfires (refer Attachment 1). With all food and wine donated by local suppliers, all proceeds from the evening will be donated to four charities - Australian Red Cross Society, The Salvation Army, Lifeline Queensland and St Vincent de Paul Society of Queensland.

The Queensland Parliament's Bushfire Appeal Reception is a ticketed event, with donations of $125 per person required to secure a ticket. Tickets for the event must be booked before Thursday, 17 October 2019.

In addition, Council has also received a request from the Premier's Office, for staff to attend the event and construct a display showcasing the , produce and experiences. General Manager Customer and Regional Prosperity, Debra Howe and Economic Development Officer - Events, Kelli Rabbit, will man the Scenic Rim region display.

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Budget / Financial Implications

Donations of $125 per person are required to secure tickets.

Australian Red Cross Society, Lifeline Queensland, The Salvation Army and St Vincent de Paul Society of Queensland all have Deductible Gift Recipients (DGR) status, active from 1 July 2000 and covered by Item 1 of the table in section 30-15 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997.

The cost of setting up the Scenic Rim showcase display will be borne by the 2019-2020 Economic Development budget.

Strategic Implications

Operational Plan

Theme: 2. Sustainable and Prosperous Economy

Key Area of Focus: 2.1.2 Develop and maximise the value derived from vibrant and sustainable tourism and genuine visitor experience

Legal / Statutory Implications

Not applicable.

Risks

Strategic Risks

The following Level 1 and Level 2 (strategic) risks are relevant to the matters considered in this report:

SR54 Ineffectively managing the political and government departmental relationships/partnerships, resulting in Council not achieving its major strategic objectives.

Risk Assessment

Category Consequence Likelihood Inherent Treatment of Residual Risk risks Risk Rating Rating Reputation Moderate Possible Medium In messaging Low communicate the Risk to Council economic value of reputation due to tourism to the region community perception and importance as a of elected officials driver of growth. attending expensive, Ensure attendees are glamorous events appropriate to the portfolio Reputation Minor Possible Low Ensure appropriate Low attendance Risk to Council reputation within tourism industry by not having appropriate representation if we are successful

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Consultation

The invitation was received by Council's Manager Regional Prosperity and Communications to set up the promotional display, and was discussed with the Chief Executive Officer and General Manager Customer and Regional Prosperity.

Conclusion

Council and Councillors have been invited to attend the Queensland Parliament's Bushfire Appeal Reception, raising funds for the Queensland Parliament's Bushfire Appeal to support the broader Queensland community and those affected by the recent bushfires, which impacted the Scenic Rim. As tickets are to be purchased by Thursday, 17 October, it is recommended that Council acknowledge which Councillor/s have chosen to attend this event.

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Item 12.1 - Attachment 1 Page 6 Ordinary Meeting Agenda – Late Items 21 October 2019

12.2 Binna Burra Festival Funding Application

Executive Officer: General Manager Customer and Regional Prosperity

Item Author: Tourism Development Officer

Attachments:

1. Gondwana Festival Economic Impact ⇩ 2. Binna Burra funding application ⇩

Executive Summary

Council has received an application from Binna Burra Lodge (BBL) for financial assistance to deliver the inaugural Gondwana Festival in December 2019.

Recommendation

That Council support the inaugural Gondwana Festival “Binna Burra Re-born - Gateway to Gondwana”, being held in December 2019, with the provision of $10,000 plus GST from the 2019-2020 Events Sponsorship budget.

Previous Council Considerations / Resolutions

Nil.

Report / Background

The Gondwana Festival is designed to coincide with the anniversary of the inaugural summer camp held at Binna Burra on 16 December 1933, which presents an opportunity to mark the re-birth of BBL (albeit an abridged version) in December 2019. It is the intention that this event will then become an annual event and given the timing of the year is in low season, this presents an excellent opportunity, through establishing this new event, to grow visitation in what is typically very slow time within the tourism industry.

The Gondwana Festival will become an annual celebration showcasing the beauty and wonder of Australia’s and its World Heritage listed rainforest.

The theme of the inaugural 2019 festival is “Binna Burra Re-born - Gateway to Gondwana” and it will highlight the operations of BBL after the devastating bushfire emergency, as well as celebrate the surrounding Scenic Rim communities, and supporting other local tourism operators and experiences.

Over three days, an estimated 4,000 people from across Australia and around the world will bring Binna Burra back to life with a festival staged across the 34 hectares of the BBL site.

The Gondwana Festival, "Binna Burra Re-born - Gateway to Gondwana", will bring together 100% local suppliers providing a showcase of food, beverage, and arts and craft, plus quality health and wellbeing services from the Scenic Rim.

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Last financial year BBL welcomed 26,500 guests, over 48,000 guest nights, with 68% intrastate (SE QLD), 16% interstate (Australia) and 16% international visitors. For day visitors to the Binna Burra section of Lamington National Park, Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) reports that 460,000 people annually recreate in the Binna Burra region of Lamington National Park.

From this data, it is anticipated that there will be high demand for participation at the inaugural Gondwana Festival. Combined with the re-opening of BBL’s campground, Sky Lodges and Lamington Teahouse as well as Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) walking trails, the event will offer day pass tickets for a range of events along with accommodation and activity packages.

Overflow accommodation will be directed from the BBL‘s reservation system to the wide range of quality accommodation offered throughout the Scenic Rim, specifically within the Beechmont, Canungra and surrounding areas.

Council's accommodation register shows overnight capacity (including a reconfigured BBL) for 2,816 guests. This influx of visitation will provide significant accommodation revenue in the low season immediately prior to the Christmas/Summer peak.

Over three days, an estimated 4,000 people from across Australia and around the world will contribute an estimated $585,000 in direct expenditure into the Scenic Rim region's economy.

Promotion and marketing reach for the inaugural Gondwana Festival will be extensive and likely to extend beyond the State to national and global exposure.

Since the bushfire emergency, BBL and the Binna Burra area have featured in more than 7,200 media appearances across Australia and around the world. The resulting total adverting value equivalent is estimated at USD $50 million (AUD$75million).

This unprecedented recognition for Binna Burra, albeit negative coverage of the impact of the bush fires, will be utilised to promote the establishment of the new Gondawana Festival and communicate the re-birth of BBL in a series of positive, “open for business” and environmental messages.

These stories will focus on Binna Burra and Lamington National Park, and extend to destinations across the Scenic Rim. If an estimate of 10% of previous coverage is achieved, the Gondawana Festival may attract AUD $7.25 million in advertising value equivalent for Binna Burra and the Scenic Rim region.

Prior to the bushfire emergency, BBL maintained excellent media relations, which have since greatly expanded. All Australian television and radio networks have continued to maintain an interest in the Binna Burra story and could reasonably be expected to cover the re-birth of Binna Burra and the Gondwana Festival event held on site to celebrate.

Furthermore, BBL has its own extensive direct marketing and social media network including an EDM database of 40,000, a social media following of 48,000 and custom social media adverting audience of 160,000. With the inclusion of 100% local suppliers to the event, the festival can also rely on the extensive social media networks of these enterprises, as well as utilising marketing contributions from Visit Scenic Rim.

To assist with the launch of this annual event and reinvigorate tourism to the bush fire affected regions of the Scenic Rim, BBL is seeking a cash contribution from Council of $10,000 to cover the hire of function facilities, which were lost in the business fire, along with other equipment and services and to drive some of their marketing efforts through specialist influencers. Additionally, BBL looks to collaborate with Council and Visit Scenic Rim to source local suppliers, lend event equipment and co-promote across all media channels.

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Budget / Financial Implications

The Events Sponsorship budget has funds available for this sponsorship.

The General Manager Customer and Regional Prosperity has delegated authority to approve contributions to individual events up to $5,000 per event, however any financial support above this amount requires Council approval.

Council's economic impact modelling platform (economy.id) was utilised to model 1,000 day visitors plus 1,000 overnight visitors staying in and around the Scenic Rim.

This calculated an estimated economic return to the region of $585,000 which translates to a return of a minimum of $58.50 for every Council dollar invested.

Of the $90,000 budget for event support, $72,000 remains unallocated at this time.

Proposed breakdown of grant expenditure includes:

Media Famil + Influencers- $3,500 (inc travel costs): • Local talent/influencers • Kate Nelson (Plastic Free Mermaid (81.5k followers) • Khory Hancock- Environmental Scientist (16.6k followers) • Kira Simpson- Green Hub (32.5k followers)

Guest Speakers: • Tim Flannery (Environmentalist) • Gary Norris (Travelling Chef and visual story teller)

• Site Build - $6,500: • Presentation Staging + PA for speakers/cooking demonstrations • Stage lighting + general site lighting (for evening dinner) • Marquee • Rental of Chairs and tables

In-kind support from Council: • Smaller out-door marquees for market area • Marketing support

Binna Burra has indicated their intention is to utilise the funding from Council to apply for matched funding from Tourism and Events QLD to support the delivery of the inaugural Gondwana Festival and that they will request a minimum of three years of funding.

Strategic Implications

Operational Plan

Theme: 2. Sustainable and Prosperous Economy

Key Area of Focus: 2.1.2 Develop and maximise the value derived from vibrant and sustainable tourism and genuine visitor experience

Legal / Statutory Implications

Not applicablea

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Risks

Strategic Risks

The following Level 1 and Level 2 (strategic) risks are relevant to the matters considered in this report:

SR52 Ineffective and/or unrealistic strategic plans which are not appropriately scoped or resourced, resulting in missed opportunities, re-work, failure to deliver objectives and loss of confidence by community.

Risk Assessment

Category Consequence Likelihood Inherent Treatment of Residual Risk Rating risks Risk Rating Reputation Moderate Possible Low Economic modelling to Low ensure the investment Failure to is commensurate with capitalise on potential economic tourism and benefits; assessment economic and evaluation; development preparation of opportunities leverage plan to which have optimise benefits potential to flowing from the event deliver growth

Consultation

Consultation was undertaken with the General Manager Customer and Regional Prosperity, Manager Regional Prosperity and Communications, the Department of Tourism Industry Development, Tourism and Events Queensland the BBL Recovery Task Force and Binna Burra Lodge Board and team members.

The BBL Recovery Task Force is particularly interested in this event as a culmination of work by a large number of local, state and federal agencies that has been, and continues to be, carried out in the region.

Conclusion

It is recommended that Council consider providing $10,000 funding for the inaugural Gondwana Festival to be delivered by BBL from 13 to 15 December 2019, which marks the inaugural Summer Camp held on the site on 16 December 1933. The bush fires have impacted this iconic tourism operation, however the tenacity of the BBL Board means this will not define BBL. They are viewing it as merely a point in time and the efforts to rebuild and rebirth the site as the beginning of the next phase in their history.

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Item 12.2 - Attachment 1 Page 11 Ordinary Meeting Agenda – Late Items 21 October 2019

Item 12.2 - Attachment 2 Page 12 Ordinary Meeting Agenda – Late Items 21 October 2019

Item 12.2 - Attachment 2 Page 13