Major development plans on cards to turn Jindabyne into next Aspen

Jindabyne is a resort town that isn’t equipped to handle tourists — but plans are underway to turn it into Australia’s answer to Aspen or Queenstown. The Deputy Premier is considering a number of plans to improve the town.

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Jindabyne is a resort town that isn’t equipped to handle tourists — but plans are underway to turn it into Australia’s answer to Aspen or Queenstown.

The town’s development has been frozen in time for decades but a host of improvements including a bigger, better airport are being considered by Deputy Premier John Barilaro.

With its enviable position overlooking the lake and easy access to Kosciuszko National Park, it should be a destination of choice like New Zealand’s Queenstown or America’s Aspen.

But its problems were highlighted at Easter when tens of thousands of visitors turned up for the long weekend — and spent an hour fighting through traffic just to get into the town.

There are plans to turn Jindabyne into the next destination of choice. Picture: Sean Davey

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The many families then had to get back in their cars — because there are few footpaths — and drive to the shops, only to find the one supermarket in town was closed for the public holidays.

And the situation is worse when skiers flood in, on their way to the slopes of Thredbo and Perisher.

The town’s limited internet bandwidth often collapses under the load and there is so little available accommodation between June and September, seasonal workers are often forced to sleep in caravans.

Could Jindabyne be the next Aspen?

Summer used to be quieter but a boom in the popularity of mountain biking is the driving force behind a 12.3 per cent increase in visitors to Jindabyne between 2017 and 2018, which is worsening the crush.

A masterplan to revitalise the hub of the Snowy Mountains is being drafted by the state government.

As well as sealing the tarmac and upgrading the Jindabyne airport, Mr Barilaro favours a bypass to redirect resort traffic away from the centre of town and rezoning more land for residential development.

Thredbo landslide survivor and now Thredbo Resort Operations Manager Stuart Diver said the government has wasted the potential of Jindabyne. Picture: Sean Davey

Deputy Premier John Barilaro hopes a number of upgrades can make the town more tourist-friendly. Picture: Sean Davey

“If we’re going to make this a 12-month destination, we’re going to have to improve infrastructure,” Mr Barilaro said.

“When you talk about a winter destination, this is it. Jindabyne could be world class, it could be the next Aspen.”

Funding for a $40m high school, $10m police station, a new TAFE and a study space for online university students have already been set aside but won’t be spent until the Masterplan has been finalised, Mr Barilaro said.

Sylvanna Corlazzoli, 21, from Canada, mountain biking in Jindabyne. Picture: Sean Davey

Tammy Stewart and her son Nixon, 10, at Thredbo. Picture: Sean Davey

Survivor of the 1997 Thredbo landslide and now Thredbo Resort Operations Manager Stuart Diver said Jindabyne was a handbrake on the ski resorts.

“Everyone talks about Jindabyne being the Queenstown of Australia but successive government have wasted Jindabyne’s potential, which is just crazy,” Mr Diver said.

“It’s good to see a government is finally going to invest in Jindabyne because it’s been a long time coming and there is massive room for expansion.”

According to Mr Diver, the Jindabyne housing shortage is a problem for Thredbo’s workers, who can’t afford the increased rent during winter.

Steven Romppanen and Jaime Egan taking in the views of Lake Jindabyne. Picture: Sean Davey

Mexican restaurant chain Beach Burrito founder Blake Read rents out a house in Jindabyne every ski season, where his staff live while they run a pop-up store.

“The places available to rent for staff are diabolical — they’re the same houses I was renting 25 years ago and nothing’s changed,” Mr Read said.

“The going rate during the ski season is $200 a week for a bed, not even a room, and they squeeze eight people into two-bed units.

“It’s cheaper to rent a place for the season.”

A draft of the Go Jindabyne Masterplan will be published in May and finalised by November.

Originally published as Major development plans on cards to turn Jindabyne into next Aspen