There was a bit of a shock wave emanate through Tenterfield when job ads for two council tourism officers appeared in last week's Star, but rest assured we're not losing the services of the much-loved Caitlin Reid.
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In fact council's chief executive Terry Dodds said the new recruits will help to relieve Ms Reid of some of her workload, the enormity of which became apparent when she was absent for a month last year and there was no-one who could step in take over.
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Mr Dodds said staff structure reviews and the recent The Voice Project Change Challenge confirmed that issues in all but two sectors of the organisation had been addressed.
The planning department had been stressed due to the high number of development applications processed over the past 12 months, but this workload has now eased to an extent.
The other area was Harry Bolton's tourism and community development sector, with a staff of three.
"The work Caitlin does behind the scenes is greater than the average person would think," Mr Dodds said.
The shire's social media presence in its target markets is largely driven by Ms Reid as are other promotions, often run in conjunction with neighbouring councils as part of the New England High Country group. She also manages the Visitor Information Centre.
"Caitlin's job is promoting Tenterfield, not running the VIC," Mr Dodds said.
A tourism and culture service officer is being recruited to manage the VIC, and assist at the Tenterfield School of Arts as necessary.
A tourism and marketing officer is being hired to assist Ms Reid in her promotions role.
Given budget considerations Mr Dodds said he wouldn't be recruiting for these positions if there wasn't a clear need. He said it was a 20-month process to arrive at this solution, after efficiencies had to be found in other sectors to remain within council's capped operating budget.
