Gold Coast budget 2020: Destination Gold Coast tourism funding request snubbed

Mayor Tom Tate has sensationally sprayed a Destination Gold Coast pitch for extra funding to recover from coronavirus as “underwhelming” - and rejected the request in the budget.

THE Gold Coast’s chief tourism marketing body has sensationally missed out on extra funding in the council budget, with Mayor Tom Tate calling an original pitch “underwhelming”.

Destination Gold Coast has received $15.5 million in direct funding in the budget, the same figure it received in 2019-2020.

Just five weeks ago, Destination Gold Coast CEO Annliese Battista asked for an extra $4.1 million to help it claw back some of the $4.3 billion lost to the tourism industry from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mayor Tom Tate defended the snub, saying council was initially “underwhelmed” by the tourism body’s presentation.

GIANT AQUATIC CENTRE FUNDED IN COUNCIL BUDGET

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate delivering the 2020-21 budget. Picture: Tertius Pickard

“The market has changed and while the borders are closed there are no international travellers. You don’t need to do international trips. Top marks to Destination Gold Coast, they stopped their spend. They already have $7.5 million in their reserves,” he said.

“It is the same as last year and by the time you add the $7 million, by the time the borders open they will have more money.

RATES FROZEN IN COUNCIL BUDGET

“We looked at their financial modelling and I thought it was more than ample.

“The data already shows the most desired destination for Australians is the Gold Coast. We are already up there, we just need to maintain that position.

“I am from marketing and tourism myself, I can do that budget and deliver record visits.

“The key to leverage your money is working with Tourism Queensland.”

Annaliese Battista. Picture: Mike Batterham

Destination Gold Coast used its May 11 presentation to emphasise up to 10 million fewer tourists would visit the Gold Coast this year, with the financial cost a whopping 74 per cent decline on 2019.

However, councillors held off a decision and had Ms Battista return the following week to prepare more in-depth answers.

Cr Tate this morning said he had been “underwhelmed” by the initial presentation.

“My humble opinion is this. If I had left it as one pitch only, I don’t think they would have got anywhere,” he said.

‘The business model was underwhelming and it didn’t convince me to use more ratepayers funds because it did not say how you are getting a return on investment. That’s a simple metric.

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate with deputy mayor Donna Gates this morning. Picture: Tertius Pickard

MORE NEWS

Revealed: Gold Coast’s 10 biggest new developments

‘Little angel’: Hembrow loses baby at 30 weeks

Notorious Mongrel Mob gang inflitratest Coast suburbs

“I went, well let’s not worry about questions now because with our councillors, they would have torn them apart with the questions.

“I said go away, do your homework and repitch.

“It convinced me to maintain the same funding level, plus the $7.5 million which had been put away. It convinced me that was enough. The board won’t open until July, there will only be a 10-month window of opportunity and summer time we are going to fill up anyway.”

Destination Gold Coast has been approached for comment.

In the 2020-21 financial year, Destination Gold Coast will launch four campaigns under a “come back to play” banner aimed initially at the drive market, then interstate, then NZ and eventually, the international audience.

The first of these launched late last week.

Its data suggests the biggest influx of visitors will come in the first half of 2021, though numbers will still be significantly lower than pre-2020 numbers.