Cr Danita Potter - Tourism and Arts Portfolio Report - 13 June 2018

Belinda Seeney, food and travel writer was in the region on 19 – 20 May gaining content for foodie stories. Initial content appeared in the Courier Mail on 5 June with ‘Best Bites South Burnett’ receiving much interest.

Cath Johnsen, writer for Brisbane Kids magazine enjoyed a 2 day South Burnett experience on 25 – 27 May. Cath and her family travelled the South Burnett Rail Trail and this will be the focus of writing content in the publication in the not too distant future.

This year the Goomeri Pumpkin Festival at the end of May was once again a very successful event in our region.  Whilst I understand that the local government boundary does not include the town of Goomeri, the Tourism region for the South Burnett does. With this in mind, this year a survey has been distributed to South Burnett businesses to gain some insight into what this event contributes to the region. Once we have the data, we will collate and provide some insights back to the community. 

Last week I met with Katie Woods, the Partnerships Manager for Arts Queensland.  We discussed the opportunity for local artists to access funding through Council’s Community Grants Program as well as the arts development activities happening in the South Burnett through Council’s Economic Development Branch.  Katie thanked Council for the great work we are doing in this space and how we now have synergies across the various segments of the arts.

And finally, as an early notification for August, the location for South Burnett Unpacked 4 will be in Wondai and it will have a South Burnett Rail Trail focus.