The lead by Douglas in funding its tourism promotion through Council levies got some new traction in the amalgamated election debate today. In a friendly radio chat between council candidates Rod Davis and Kevin Byrne, through Radio Port Douglas’s Rodcast Breakfast, Rod raised the question of a tourism promotion levy being raised in Cairns, rather that Cairns sinking Douglas Shire’s $400,000 PA input to teh PDDT. Importantly, it was good to see Mayor Byrne enthuse support for the tourism levy concept, and with it, the added benefit that will flow through to tourism promotion for the benefit of Cairns. Of all the divisions where tourism is import, surely Div 10 with its Daintree, Port Douglas and Palm Cove, stand the most to gain if heat is kept under the tourism promotion burners. Of course the recent renaissance of Douglas’s tourism body, the PDDT, has heightened nervousness in Douglas that it’s well funded PDDT future maybe be short lived. But maybe it’s a case of Douglas leading Cairns when it comes to this subject.

Whilst the on-air in debate did not get into the nitty gritty of the mechanisms and methods by which a levy could be raised in Cairns, it was nonetheless reassuring to the tourism sector in Douglas, (and likely Cairns) that Cairns may build on, rather than undermine the funding methods of Douglas’s PDDT.

With intense competition from the competing regions and destinations of Australia now well advanced, it was good to see Kevin Byrne step up to the mark on the issue, when asked.

Val Schier has, in similar on air conversations with Rod, shown inclination towards supporting the tourism levy concept.

From my point of view, as candidate, its good to behind a seemingly successful Douglas export idea, and open pre-election debate is a wholesome thing. As are banana’s for breakfast as Kevin would suggest on air today, and I would agree, but at this time of the year, my breakfast addiction is mangosteins. Eve got it wrong when she went for a mere apple.

From my point of view, having laboured to have the PDDT’s funding almost doubled, the acceptance in the sense of the Douglas model being spread to Cairns, is indeed promising. Clearly more debate is needed, but now is the time that both Val Shier and Kevin Byrne were more maybe forthright about their position of raising a tourism levy.

Also on the tourism front, Douglas could breathe some relief today, when struggling MFS were reported to have sold off their tourism arm Stella to an Asian arm of equity group, CVC . Bale management goes with the Stella sale, but whether Bale builder keep building is unsure as yet.

Of interest to Cairns may be the way the levy is raised in Douglas. Overnight holiday rental accom pays around $200 more in rates each year, plus a separate levy is raised from the commercial and commercial accom sector, and whilst its catches a few complaining businesses, overall the community has been in favour of the levy for some time. Douglas know that if its destination marketing falls behind, the business is impacted way harder that the cost of the extra $200 PA per holiday unit. Local accom managers who get nothing but complaints from their southern strata title owners ( who don’t get a vote unlike NSW), may now get the destination marketing boost they need. Technically, owners who have rental units with leases to locals of over 3 month’s duration don’t pay the rate based tourism levy.

Much of my personal effort in Douglas as a councillor has been focused in supporting the billion dollar Douglas tourism industry that supports 80 to 90% of this shire, where over 90 % of this shire’s employment is within the shire, and is either directly or indirectly driven by tourism earnings. This shift in ideas could be as good for Palm Cove as it has been for Douglas.

From Rod Davis

www.roddavis.org

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