What happened at the Community Forum

A community forum was held tonight (17 October) at Council Chambers between 6pm and 8pm.

30 people from across the industry attended representing a variety of facets of the tourism industry including accommodation, events, Chambers of Commerce, attractions and Nambucca Shire Council.

First on the agenda was the SWOT Analysis - resulting information follows...

SWOT Anlaysis
Strengths: Natural beauty, Bowraville, diversity, lifestyle, climate, beaches, no development, fishing, snorkeling, clean beaches, river, family friendly events, forest & national parks, under developed, people, views / scenery, relaxed stress free, history, culture, pure air, village atmosphere, industries, community support each other

Weaknesses: roads, poor networks, jobs for kids, highway bypass, lack of tours, poor communication between local tour companies & businesses, no developed identity, lack of cohesiveness between towns, parochialism, lack of general publicity (outside of the area), outlying communities not recognised (eungai, gumma, valla), Coffs Coast investment hasn't been 100% valuable, reliance on Coffs Coast identity, state of the river & environment, security, pressure groups resisting growth, communication technology, distance (to travel from major cities), road accident vulnerability, low per capita income, mapping not comprehensive, signage, total concentration on beaches not hinterland, lack of attractiveness, social issues, police & crime, lack of variety of accommodation, towns cut by highway, no towns are declared a 'regional centre' in future state planning, shopping, hospital system

Opportunities: River cruises, waterfall way bowraville connection, food, wharfs connecting towns, kayak tours, water activities / canoe hire, maps of drives, walking tracks, regatta between three towns, rowing club involving schools, scuba diving, museum promotion, collaboration with other areas, highway signage and information bays, cultural centre (including bush tucker, artworks), accommodation, RTA support & networking, display local produce, markets (like Bellingen), handmade, education, eco tourism, funding, land based whale watching, bird watching, sea change, swans, turtles gumma, networks of people in like industries (arts, accommodation, attractions, tours), more information distributed throughout community, breakwall to river in Nambucca Lookout at Scotts Head, scenic drives with picnic areas

Threats: Narrow mindedness, highway bypass, lack of direction, misuse of land, tourism structure, local population don't care, justice system, apathy, not growing, not implementing strategy, escalating crime, community spirit, environment, river management, look at ourselves - retail hospitality, level of service, mis-management of websites, not keeping up, lack of full time tourism staff, youth leaving area, misinformation, word of mouth, not identifying assets

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