Council CEO warns Noosa in for tough year

A leader warns that although Noosa’s financial position had stood up surprisingly well in 2020, the coming 12 months will be just as challenging.

Noosa Council CEO Brett de Chastel is looking to better days ahead even though COVID-19 impacts remain an economic threat to the region.

Noosa's economic glass in the past year was full to overflowing for some companies who have cashed in on pandemic business opportunities.

But in a sobering council budget "scene setting" briefing to Noosa councillors on Thursday, council CEO Brett de Chastel said for other traders reliant on the flow of tourists, the glass had been drained by record trading lows.

Mr de Chastel warned that although Noosa's financial position had stood up surprisingly well after an initial big hit from the COVID-19 shutdown, the coming 12 months would be just as challenging for businesses.

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"We might feel safe, but we're not going to get back to normal, it's going to be another difficult year," he said.

"The vaccine will not mean Covid ends with a bang.

"There is no date where we'll say 'well we got rid of Covid that's it, it can all go back to normal'.

"It's going to be a while to recover, but we're in a good position."

Mr De Chastel said unemployment took off after coronavirus restrictions took hold.

"I've never seen anything like it, but it's come back really strongly, it's actually ahead of where jobs were being advertised just before Covid," he said.

Noosa Council CEO Brett de Chastel takes the economic pulse of the shire for councillor briefing.

He said council economic modelling showed about 1750 jobs were lost in Noosa in one quarter during the shutdown.

He said one of the big unknowns was what would happen come March 28 when the Federal Government ended its JobKeeper payments.

The CEO said at one stage there were about 4500 people in Noosa who were getting JobKeeper and generally Noosa's business performance had been "patchy".

"We've got people who've had a record year which is really strange, we've also had people who had a record low year," Mr de Chastel said.

He said those in the caravan industry, bike retailing and bottle shop sales and digital businesses were among the real winners.

"At the other end of the scale airline transport businesses have probably had the worst year they've ever had," he said.

"Tour operators have really struggled - hostels and international backpackers have disappeared," Mr de Chastel said.

He said the third sector hard hit was body corporate management rights as owners last year moved into their units rather than rented them out.

Despite the hardships felt in Noosa, Mr de Chastel said the council's rate arrears were no different to previous years and he predicted the Federal Government's "rivers of gold" economic stimulus would continue to flow.

"The pump-priming of the economy is going to continue, the Commonwealth Government will probably do most of that heavy lifting," he said.

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