Hobart City Council moves to drop Taste of Tasmania

The state’s peak tourism body has pledged support to the Hobart Council decision to dump the Taste of Tasmania, stating the community needs to be “mature about an entry fee”. LATEST ON TASTE >>

TOURISM Industry Council Tasmania chief executive officer Luke Martin said the community needed to be “mature about an entry fee” to Taste of Tasmania.

He said Hobart City Council’s decision to offload the festival was a welcome one and had been a long time coming.

“Tasmanians have shown with the Dark Mofo Winter Feast that if the event is quality they are willing to pay a small entry fee to make it viable,” Mr Martin said.

“The council deserves every credit for growing the Taste over three decades, but the event has clearly outgrown it.

“We cannot find any event of the scale of the Taste anywhere in Australia that is still run by a relatively small local government.”

Tourism Industry Council Tasmania CEO Luke Martin. Picture: Richard Jupe

Mr Martin said he was hopeful in the coming weeks that a not-for-profit model could be established with a board overseen by stall holders, business heads and community representatives.

“Just like Festivale, Festival of Voices, and many of our other successful events across the state.

“They may contract a private event organiser or festival director to put the event on, but surely any profits generated from the Taste should go to the stallholders, not an event organisers.”

Hobart City Council Alderman Marti Zucco who voted against last night’s council recommendation to divest the festival said any reinvented version of the event should not include a cover price.

Marti Zucco on the North Hobart restaurant strip. Picture: NIKKI DAVIS-JONES

Ald Zucco, who was involved as a stallholder in the second Taste of Tasmania, said he was frustrated that Hobart City Council had paid a consultant $50,000 eight years ago to come up with a recommendation but the local authority ignored the advice.

“I’ve been frustrated at elected members who have no idea how to run events,” he said.

“I’ve pushed and pushed for years and years for it to go for an authority that would be at arm’s length from the council. We could have done this 20 years ago.”

Council moves to drop Taste of Tasmania

AFTER 31 years, Hobart City Council will dump the Taste of Tasmania festival.

Last year’s eight-day festival, which is usually the highlight of the Christmas-New Year season, was cancelled following the coronavirus crisis.

The state government and Hobart City Council sought submissions from experienced event organisers to run a new end-of-year food and drink celebration.

City of Hobart offered to provide $300,000 towards a modified event but no solution was found.

The council spent $1.6m each year on the event.

It has worked with stakeholders to produce a report on the future of the festival and Councillor Zelinda Sherlock told Monday night’s meeting there was the unanimous view that Taste should move out of council ownership.

“It has grown to such a high-level event of state significance, it is no longer suitable for ratepayers to underwrite the festival,” Cr Sherlock said.

Initially the council was to discuss the festival’s future behind closed doors at Monday night’s meeting, but Alderman Marti Zucco moved to have the discussion heard in public.

The council will instruct the chief executive officer to come up with a transition plan to divest the local authority of the festival.

Crowds at the Taste of Tasmania. Picture: LUKE BOWDEN

Alderman Jeff Briscoe said it was a sad day for the City of Hobart.

“But I do agree with the reasons why we need to move on,” he said.

“A few years ago the city looked at various proposals to transition out of it and we thought we could continue.

“If it’s viable for a private operator or government instrumentality or a small business group, if they approached us for sponsorship money we would do that.

“I do feel a sense of sadness to say goodbye to something that lasted 31 years.”

Alderman Damon Thomas said the council should expect to see the decision on the front page of Tuesday’s newspaper and that the Lord Mayor should be prepared for huge outcry.

“We’re not saying it’s because of COVID, it’s just because it’s time,” he said.

Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds said the City of Hobart had delivered the event for more than three decades, developing it to a point where it had outgrown the City’s resources.

“The Taste of Tasmania generates huge economic and social benefits to Tasmania – not just Hobart – worth around $47 million a year to the state,” Cr Reynolds said.

“Putting on an event of the size and scope of the Taste takes a large amount of resources and funding, which in turn rests on Hobart’s ratepayers.”

The Hobart City Council is moving to divest itself of the Taste of Tasmania. Picture: SAM ROSEWARNE

Premier Peter Gutwein said the decision allowed the opportunity to refresh the festival concept.

“The government is committed to working with the council and other key stakeholders on an appropriate transition plan to a new event concept that activates the waterfront during the Christmas and New Year period.”

A report is to be provided to the council with the plan to offload the festival by the end of June.

A further report will be provided to Council on the proposal for a 2021-22 waterfront summer season activation program that includes Christmas and New Year programming.