Mildura businesses hurting despite no coronavirus cases in five months
Mildura hasn’t had a local active coronavirus case in five months but remains on tough restrictions. Businesses are feeling the pinch.
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Mildura is hundreds of kilometres from the nearest coronavirus case, but its businesses are still counting the cost of Victoria’s second lockdown.
The Mildura local government area has recorded one new active case in the past five months, which was found to be a person who was actually in Melbourne.
Greater Bendigo, 400km away, is the nearest municipality with an active case.
Mildura Regional Development chief executive Brett Millington said the impact of recent restrictions, coupled with border closures in a tri-state region, had been “significant” on local business.
He questioned why Mildura should be on the same rules as Geelong, given the vast difference in proximity to Melbourne.
Mr Millington said while he was encouraged by some of Premier Daniel Andrews’ more recent comments about regional Victoria, there was a sense of uncertainty in the local community.
“The challenge for everyone at the moment is just the unknown,” he said.
“When you haven’t had a case in five months, it makes it really hard to keep people motivated.”
Mr Andrews has cautioned that “COVID-free” regions are only “COVID-free to the best of our knowledge”.
But local representatives have spent recent weeks arguing Mildura’s rules were out of step with reality.
Federal Member for Mallee Anne Webster was critical of Victoria‘s roadmap to COVID-normal for putting all of regional Victoria on the same set of rules.
State Member for Mildura Ali Cupper wants the Mildura electorate to move straight to the “final step” if it meets the case threshold by September 28.
“We can’t have a situation where our electorate is being kept shut – and only reopening at very slow intervals – over the coming weeks and months due to cases hundreds of kilometres away,” Ms Cupper said.
“We have and can continue to keep ourselves safe and COVID-19 free, while at the same time allowing our businesses and residents a semblance of ‘COVID normal’ much sooner than has been forecast.”
Mr Andrews told regional reporters last week the state couldn’t have “nine different sets of rules across regional Victoria”.
“We haven’t got an unlimited number of police to put on roadblocks literally everywhere,” he said.
The Premier said if cafes and restaurants were open in the state’s northwest but not central Victoria, “you’ll finish up with people travelling from higher risk regional Victorian zones”.
Mr Andrews on Sunday said it “looks likely” regional Victoria would be able to move to the third step in coming days.
He also said a “ring of steel border” around Melbourne would limit travel between metro and regional areas.
Hospitality business on rollercoaster
Mocha Mecca Mildura City owner Stuart Garsed said it had been a “rollercoaster” year.
Trade at the Mildura CBD cafe in April and May was down more than half on the previous year, but as restrictions eased, July was back to normal levels.
When regional Victoria went back to stage 3 rules in August, Mr Garsed said business was down by a third, with September looking similar.
“In July, we smashed it, we bounced back really well,” he said.
“I was very optimistic for the future with what we were doing with customers coming through the day … if it kept like that I wouldn’t have a care in the world.
“But (stage 3) was a massive kick in the guts, it was like one step forward, two steps back.”
Mr Garsed last week set up the tables and chairs in the cafe’s dining area, which customers can’t access, just to make the space “feel somewhat normal again”.
He said it was frustrating to be shut down while Mildura had no cases, but he could also understand the desire to try and limit travel around the state.
“I kind of do get why they’ve locked us down, but it’s frustrating because if we weren’t under restrictions, our local community could support my business and a lot of the others hurting around here as well,” he said.
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