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AN impassioned speech from the Tenterfield and District Visitors Association president wasn't enough to waver council as they opted to pull funding from the group.
At council's monthly ordinary meeting in Drake on Wednesday councillors voted against providing annual funding for the operation of the Tenterfield Visitors Information Centre.
Councillors voted unanimously to renew the centres licence agreement for a further three year period to provide some surety but knocked back the groups wish to remove the $6000 licence fee paid per annum.
The TDVA's attempt to get a $30,000 annual contribution also fell flat.
The groups president Peter Brier-Mills said he felt they were "on the right track" but a number of councillors didn't agree.
Deputy mayor Mary Leahy voted against the annual funding and said her reasoning was simple - council are in the midst of a battle to stay financially viable.
"We are currently facing financial ratios we can't meet," Cr Leahy said.
Others simply wanted to pull the rug out all together and have the funding and lease agreement cancelled.
"I think council should run the centre like we do with the School of Arts," Cr Gary Verri said.
"Areas of our shire are being left out in the cold. We have world heritage sites that are not promoted. I would prefer that we don't renew the lease at all," he said.
The group had developed a Strategic Plan to help push their case but again, it held little sway with council.
"I think the Strategic Plan is lacking in strategy - it's just motherhood statements with no specifics," Cr Toni Hull said.
Most councillors were in agreement when saying that it appeared unfair to fund a volunteer run organisation and not any others.
"It has to be seen as a volunteer organisation - we have a lot of others in town who work their butts off and raise their own money," Cr Hull said.
Weighing up profit and losses the group said they will go bust within three years if funding was culled.
"I didn't see any evidence of them failing (reading the Strategic Plan) - there is money in the bank," Cr Leahy said.
A rescission motion was put forward at the end of deliberations.
We will keep you updated with the full run down in our next paper.
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THE Tenterfield and District Visitors Centre will be hopeful of gaining some council surety when they put a motion forward seeking stability and support for the Visitors Information Centre.
The centre was on a knife-edge last year when councillors voted against financially supporting them to the tune of $36,300.
The decision was later overturned and council entered into a further 12 month licence agreement which allowed the centres doors to remain open and funded.
Fast forward nine months and the TDVA and council will again deliberate over whether to commit to what’s on the table.
TDVA president Peter Brier-Mills says the group want their licence agreement to be renewed for a further three to five years rather than annually.
They are also seeking the removal of $6000 licence fee paid per annum and an annual $35,000 financial contribution from council’s Community Contribution Funds.
“Following lengthy discussions, just prior to and after my appointment as president, myself together with the committee, feel strongly about the continuation of the TVA with its existing managerial structure and guidelines,” Mr Brier-Mills said.
“Hopefully they will read and see the common sense of it all.
“They, and the public, need to know things have been happening and we’re getting momentum. We want to focus on growth,” he said.
The centre undertook a six-month survey which took in results from locals and visitors.
According to the results 97 per cent of people were pleased by the work being done by the centre and the volunteers.
“It shows we are going along the right track,” Peter said.
According to the TDVA’s drafted strategic plan they envisage a loss of $35,000 per annum without council support.
Meaning within three years the doors would be slammed shut.
Council general manager Lotta Jackson will table her report for councillors to consider.
“The work carried out by the many volunteers at the Visitor Information Centre (VIC) supports the social fabric of Tenterfield,” Ms Jacksons report reads.
For money to be made available Ms Jackson says their Tourism Marketing Plan budgets would need revising.
“For Council to allocate any funds for the TDVA as requested, other budgets will have to be reduced.”