Regions locked out of business on long weekend after Melburnians banned
Businesses outside of Melbourne were set for a bumper long weekend, but a Covid-19 outbreak in the state has dashed their hopes of a local boost.
Regional Victorians have attacked the state’s fourth lockdown, which will ban Melburnians from travelling on the long weekend, forcing the cancellation of many crucial events.
But in a bid to boost economic recovery in the regions, the state government announced a $32 million package to introduce an extra 10,000 $200 travel vouchers and grants for attraction providers and alpine businesses after Lockdown 4.0.
This came after Acting Premier James Merlino refused to bow to pressure on Sunday to wind back Covid-19 restrictions, which will stop anyone leaving metropolitan Melbourne on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend.
Heathcote on Show is a popular annual wine festival held in central Victoria and its chief organiser Peter Maine said six months worth of planning was thrown away last Thursday when the event was cancelled.
“If Melbourne is closed, Heathcote is closed. Or close to it,” Mr Maine, 68, said.
“The knock-on effect is gigantic. We spent hundreds of hundreds of hours pulling the festival together. How do we stop this happening again?
“I am gobsmacked. It beggars belief that we have gone through this four times.”
The annual food and wine festival has been held for the past 17 years on the Queen’s Birthday long weekend. It raised $1.5 million for local businesses in 2019.
Mr Maine said city people were the “economic platform” of the town and after it was cancelled last year he estimated the 2021 festival would have raised $2 million for the local economy.
Tellurian Wines owner Ian Hopkins said the annual festival held on the long weekend in June was one of two of the “biggest” weekends for Heathcote winegrowers.
“It’s a great opportunity to show off the place and it’s a serious money-making exercise, so to have it wound back to regional only is a massive blow,” Mr Hopkins, 71, said.
“You just have to take that loss on the chin and work like hell subsequently to cover the (losses).
“Hopefully regional businesses can stay in business and be in a position to keep welcoming Melburnians.”
Cranford Cottage owner Stephen Trompp said his boutique country accommodation lost about 20 customers since restrictions were reintroduced.
“I think there is a feeling of – during the current period – resignation. That’s the real emotion (about town),” Mr Trompp, 64, said. “There is a large group of people who would say they don’t think the government and authorities understand the impact they are having in regional areas.”
Bendigo Mayor Jennifer Alden said: “We understand the lockdown is very frustrating and disappointing for (Heathcote on Show) event organisers, but it is the position we are currently in.”
A host of other planned events across regional Victoria were also cancelled amid the latest Covid-19 outbreak, which grew by four cases on Sunday.
After the Winery Walkabout in Rutherglen – about 300km northeast of Melbourne near the NSW border – was cancelled, Indigo Shire Mayor Jenny O’Connor said while she supported the restrictions she hoped the grand final long weekend in September could be used to encourage visitors into the regions.
“It is very disappointing that this has happened. We should brand the grand final long weekend in September into a ‘let’s visit the regions if you’re not going to the footy’ weekend,” she said.
When the Castlemaine Jazz Festival was cancelled, Mount Alexander Deputy Mayor Bill Maltby said Melburnians were a “major contributor” to the local economy.
“This coming weekend is a big weekend in tourism,” he said.
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