Chamber Chats February

Preamble  

I was contemplating utilising the assistance of one of the new A.I. platforms to assist with writing the monthly update, primarily to evaluate the progress of the technology and secondarily to see if I could reduce the time taken to meet my deadline.

I ran into a snag straight away as the platform I was using only harvested information provided before November 2020 and the web crawlers could not source the content I was after. The speed with which technology moves will ensure that this will not be the case for long and I will attempt to create the Chamber Chat next month again using A.I.  Meanwhile it’s back to the pen.

Trading/Staffing 

February is a notoriously slow month for retail and hospitality due to the overspend from January which occurs during the holiday period combined with the cost of getting the kids back to school.

Nimbin still has a bit of a buzz about and most traders are reporting solid results.

Adequate staffing is still an issue however, and people looking for employment stand in good stead if they have experience for roles on offer, as well an up-to-date resume to support their interest in finding a role.

Lismore City Council

Council has appointed a new General Manager, Jon Gibbons, to replace the outgoing General Manager John Walker who chose not to renew his contract.

The revolving door of General Managers (6 in nearly as many years) at Lismore Council is both very costly and disruptive. In recent times the Chamber has had several meetings with Council’s General Managers but the lack of continuity leads us to feel we are not having our voice heard.

Our most recent meeting with Council earlier this month was attended by Eber Butron (Executive Manager Economy and Growth) and & Tina Irish (Manager Destination and Economy). Items of interest discussed were Council’s preparation of the Nimbin Master Plan to evaluate and provide solutions for implantation of water supply, public facilities, roads and traffic. The plan is due to go on display this May.

Feedback was sought on Council’s commitment to support a new main street Visitor Information Centre (VIC) as they have failed to assist the Bush Theatre’s efforts to fill the gap in the service.

The Visit Nimbin website which has a high hit rate and hosted by Council has become outdated and unmanageable. It needs to be replaced. The Chamber is considering taking it out of Council’s hands and tailoring a new site to meet the needs of the village.

The roll out of the Roads and Traffic funded Wayfinding Project has started. Speed bumps have been installed in Cullen Street and further traffic studies are underway to inform future designs.

The Rainbow Walking Track is progressing well but is unlikely to be completed before both the Mardi Grass and Aquarius50 festivals.

Visitor signage has been installed at the 3 entries to the village as well as building plaques detailing the background and significance of buildings with historic value. Village maps are located in various locations.

It is noted that Council have not updated their Weekly Pothole Schedule on the Your Say website since 12th August 2022. The most obvious damage at the moment is the Thorburn Street potholes, and half the missing road with traffic lights heading out of the village in both directions. These  locations carry large amounts of traffic and could do with some love.

Major Events 

On Saturday 25th Feb, coinciding with Medicinal Cannabis Awareness Week, the Nimbin Hemp Embassy hosted another successful Medican event. The information session focussed on medical marijuana, covering the law, distribution, health benefits, products and literature displays. Over 100 people attended the event and left better informed on health matters with a good feeling about our village and what we offer the world. 

Aquarius50 is moving ahead. A programme will be out soon and visible on the website  www.aquarius50.com. Funding and volunteers are two main concerns now.  Friends of Aquarius50 have made a call out to solicit support from the community in both areas. Donations are appreciated as is any offer of in kind or committed energy.

A 2-day Events Management course was conducted at the Nimbin Bush Theatre by Dr Rob Evans of Event Management Australia (a world leader in his field) which was very informative. 

Nimbin Chamber of Commerce, with our member’s support, are working towards building a better, stronger and more vibrant future for our children and the community as a whole.