Economy - Community Engagement Discussion Paper

Economy

Background...... 2 Employment Areas ...... 2 Employment ...... 2

Future Employment Growth ...... 2 Critical success factors...... 3

Tourism...... 4

Strategic Challenges...... 4 Retention of Character ...... 5 Future Planning Constraints ...... 5 Skilled workforce ...... 5 Sustainable Economic Development ...... 6

Wingecarribee 2031+ Vision Statement ...... 6

Wingecarribee 2031+ Survey Results ...... 6 Aspects liked about living in the ...... 6 Aspects disliked about living in the Wingecarribee Shire ...... 6 Aspects liked most about living in your town or village...... 6 Aspects which would make Wingecarribee a great place to live, work or place in 2031...... 7 Major issues facing the Wingecarribee community in the next 20 years ...... 7

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Background

Employment Areas The Wingecarribee Shire has its main transport links via highways and railways to the Metropolitan area in the north, and beyond to the south and to the east. These pieces of infrastructure provide high level linkages to main markets.

Currently there is approximately 1000 hectares of existing zoned industrial land which includes the Moss Vale Enterprise Corridor in the Shire of which approximately 212 hectares is occupied leaving approximately 788 hectares vacant and therefore available for development 1.

Well established Industrial areas are currently located in Braemar, , and Moss Vale/New Berrima. The Moss Vale Enterprise Corridor is a recently rezoned area which is likely to supply the majority of future employment opportunities for the Shire in future years. In total the corridor has on offer some 640 hectares of land available for employment opportunities.

The major retail centres are Bowral, Mittagong and Moss Vale which service the local, Shire and out of Shire visitors. Berrima has a high proportion of tourist type retailing. The remaining commercial areas within the towns and villages have more localised retailing outlets.

Employment The Shire’s economic base is dispersed across a relatively wide range of market sectors. This has a positive feature, in that the local workforce is characterised by a range of skills appropriate to different types of industry employment needs. This strength helps to establish some sort of buffer to structural change in the local economy where there is no specific sensitivity to the viability of one or two market sectors. 2

The Wingecarribee Shire with its proximity to Sydney, Canberra and Wollongong has a strong base of economic development. The main contributors to employment currently include, tourism, manufacturing and rural activities. Other employment opportunities include education, health, retail, construction and business.

Further, there is an increasing prevalence of “working from home” as technology advancements enable people to work within a virtual office environment rather than a fixed premise. In addition, increased vehicular traffic on the into Sydney and the reduction in regional public transport services has meant workers generally seek to make alternative arrangements for working rather than daily travel to places of employment outside of the Shire.

Future Employment Growth There are a number of inter-related factors that are expected to contribute to a sustained pressure upon Council for the provision of further employment land and economic development opportunities generally. The locational advantages (in terms of relative housing affordability, lifestyle quality, proximity to Sydney, Wollongong, Canberra and recreational opportunities) of the Shire are expected to see the Shire’s population increase over the next 25 years by 16,400 people. 3 Such an increase in population within the Shire ultimately leads to a demand for employment opportunities stemming from an increase in the demand for goods and services. Demand for employment within the Shire is also expected to be influenced by:

1 Sydney-Canberra Corridor Regional Strategy 2006-2031, Department of Planning 2 Wingecarribee Our Future Strategic Plan 2002, Wingecarribee Shire Council 3 Sydney-Canberra Corridor Regional Strategy 2006-2031, Department of Planning

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• The proximity of the area to major metropolitan markets for regionally based business; • The improved accessibility of the area through infrastructure such as the M7 and M5 Motorways in Sydney • Land affordability and availability • High rates of commuting out of the subregion 4

According to the Department of Planning, the Shire’s employment population is projected to increase by 9000 people by 2031 5.

The Regional Strategy supports Bowral as a major regional centre and should be the preferred location for employment opportunities. 6 However it is common knowledge that Bowral suffers from increasing traffic congestion. Alternative options for moving cars and pedestrians around the centre is required in order to continue to make it attractive for new development investment in the future.

Whilst the Regional Strategy identifies Bowral as the main sub regional centre for the Sydney to Canberra corridor, there is recognition that Moss Vale and Mittagong play an important role in the sub-region. The three towns are separated by rural land but are in close proximity to each other and have significant roles to play eg Moss Vale has the Tertiary education facilities, Council Chambers and Court House and therefore has a civic type role and Mittagong has two new shopping centres (Highlands Marketplace and Highlands Home Makers centres) and therefore has a retail role.

Critical success factors • Skills and Workforce Capability: As the workforce is a key input or factor of production, it is important to ensure that our workforce is able to meet the skill and knowledge requirements of current and future industry needs. Initiatives will need to consider quality education and training systems that are capable of educating, training and re-training people through their working lives. 7 • Global focus: We all live in a different world today from that of only a decade or two ago. The rapid integration and interdependence of national economies mean we cannot exist in isolation of global influences. A competitive international, interstate and interregional focus is particularly important, given the limited size of the local market and its susceptibility to macroeconomic fluctuations, Real competition is with the rest of the world not with the town or local government area next door. 8

4 Sydney-Canberra Corridor Regional Strategy 2006-2031, Department of Planning 5 Sydney-Canberra Corridor Regional Strategy 2006-2031, Department of Planning 6 Sydney-Canberra Corridor Regional Strategy 2006-2031, Department of Planning 7 Economic Development Strategic Plan 2008-2016 8 Economic Development Strategic Plan 2008-2016

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Tourism The ultimate aim of tourism development is to develop a unique recreational and tourism profile for Wingecarribee that supports and enhances the existing quality of lifestyle image and integrates the environment into everyday thinking. It needs to achieve resource conservation benefits in the long term from a change in community perception and provide and environmental and educational playground for the broader regional population whilst having strong appeal for emerging experiential markets which are prevalent in the wide area. The objectives for achieving this are: • To enhance, preserve and present the attributes of the Shire; • To concentrate visitor activity and critical mass to fuel and encourage private sector investment in recreation and tourism; • To significantly increase visitation and the average length of stay in Wingecarribee by developing new experiences (events and product development) that provide broader appeal and attract markets from the wider region • To spread economic benefits from recreation and tourism throughout the Shire, including direct and indirect expenditure and employment; and • To create community benefits for the Shire (involvement, ownership/identity and understanding).

Attracting people to the Shire as visitors and/or residents is seen as a major economic driver. Tourism was estimated to have brought $170 million p.a. to the Wingecarribee Shire in 2007. 9

The challenge now will be to gain ongoing support for the Shire as a tourism destination and also sustain and grow the industry.

Strategic Challenges The Council is committed to the generation of wealth and prosperity for all its residents, the cornerstone of which is future private and public investment in economic development and subsequent employment that supports the Shire’s existing diverse and strong economic base, and does not place the Shire’s environmental qualities at risk, and protects community amenity.

There are three critical challenges that the Council must meet: • Pursue a goal for employment growth that will support the future residential growth of the Shire and seek to maintain the Shire’s current level of employment self containment, • Create opportunities for new economic investment and employment development that strengthen the Shire’s existing diverse enterprise and employment base, and • Promote and follow through on the nominated opportunities for employment development with certainty in decision making and commit to a partnership with the community and other levels of government to arrange for the provision of required infrastructure. 10

Notwithstanding, we need, in the first instance, seek to provide for a range of new economic investment and subsequent employment opportunities that: • Strengthen the diversity of the Shire’s economic and employment base, • Harness the wide range of occupational skills held by the local labour force, • Are environmentally, socially and economically sustainable, • Maximise the sustainable utilisation of the Shire’s natural, cultural, social and economic resources, and

9 Economic Development Strategic Plan 2008-2016 10 Wingecarribee Our Future Strategic Plan 2002, Wingecarribee Shire Council

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• Can be supported by existing or an appropriate level of future infrastructure.

Some priority should be given to creating new opportunities for newly emerging niche enterprises such as: • Eco–tourism, agri-tourism including integrated produce (eg food and wine) ventures and cultural tourism (eg. gardens and aboriginal culture) that would be well suited to the selected bushland and rural areas, • Technology enterprises such as call centres, software houses, agricultural technology development, that might be best located in industrial areas with a higher standard of amenity, • Food processing such as dairy product manufacture, olive and wine processing, that dependent on their scale of operations could be considered in either rural locations (to directly value add to local agriculture and possibly integrate with tourism ventures) or in selected industrial areas, and • Education, research and development enterprises (to build on the opportunity) that could be afforded by the establishment of Wollongong University campus facilities in Moss Vale and the Garvin Institute mouse breeding facility also in Moss Vale.

Retention of Character The preservation of the character of the Shire is an important consideration and challenge, particularly the dispersed nature and individuality of the towns and villages in their rural setting. Future development issues such as concentrated versus dispersed growth, infill development and greenfield development each have significant implications for the character and identity of towns, villages and Wingecarribee Shire as a whole, particularly if not adequately managed.

Future Planning Constraints Planning for future employment opportunities in Wingecarribee Shire must take into account a series of primary constraints to development. The Shire has significant areas of environmental sensitivity – both natural and man-made. It offers a major resource base for the Sydney Metropolitan Region such as drinking water supply catchment.

Much of the natural and rural landscapes are of high heritage visual/aesthetic value and the Shire's pattern of dispersed small town/village development should be maintained in order to contribute towards landscape conservation.

Skilled workforce Many people will have heard the term ‘smart’ city or ‘smart’ community but in almost all instances they focus only on information and communication technology and ignore the importance of education, skills and workforce capability across a much broader spectrum. Key factors driving a skilled shire are: • The importance of technology in today’s economy • Technology is a tool that requires skill to use well; • Economic and social significance of providing universal access to technology for all residents and eliminating unequal access; • Improved productivity, new sources of wealth and employment, enhanced international competitiveness, and a better standard of living/quality of life for all residents; • The need to differentiate the Wingecarribee Shire’s economic structure from other surrounding local government areas; • Increased use of communication and information technologies in the business and resident community, such as increased telecommuting • Rapid advances in the development of communication and information technologies that make the application of the technologies more accessible and less costly to use;

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• Increasing number working from home • Increasing energy costs and increasing importance of low energy applications 11

In a time of rapid change and uncertainty for many rural and regional communities, those best placed to survive and thrive are those that can respond and adapt to change. Universities, Technical Colleges and communities working together can result in worthwhile new developments. They can also help to find new solutions to economic, social and environmental challenges. This can be done though bringing together ideas, expertise and the processes of leaning.

Sustainable Economic Development Many communities embrace the principles of sustainable development i.e. “development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” 12

Environmental responsibility and economic development are not mutually exclusive. Achieving economic growth whilst preserving and maintaining the natural attributes that exist in the Wingecarribee Shire is a major challenge. Key factors include: • The major challenges of climate change and water conservation; • Increased environmental regulation that is influencing how we develop; • Increased social awareness and expectations; • Increased use of communication and information technologies in the business and resident community, including more telecommuting and more home businesses; • New technologies that enable the effective implementation of environmentally sustainable processes; and • The need for business and communities to reduce reliance on non renewable resource based energy production and the increasing importance of “low energy’ applications.

Wingecarribee 2031+ Vision Statement

‘A healthy and productive community, learning and living in harmony, proud of our heritage and nurturing our environment.’

Wingecarribee 2031+ Survey Results

Aspects liked about living in the Wingecarribee Shire Nil

Aspects disliked about living in the Wingecarribee Shire Nil

Aspects liked most about living in your town or village Nil

11 Economic Development Strategic Plan 2008-2016 12 Brundtland, 1987

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Aspects which would make Wingecarribee a great place to live, work or place in 2031 • More employment opportunities and attract light industry • Encourage more retail development, more restaurants open Sunday and Monday • A university campus, tertiary education and TAFE

Major issues facing the Wingecarribee community in the next 20 years • Lack of employment • Increasing cost of living

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