Goondiwindi residents asked to have their say on future location of Visitor Information Centre

Goondiwindi Region residents are being asked to share their views on the future location of the Goondiwindi Visitor Information Centre (VIC).

Goondiwindi Regional Council is opening the topic to community consultation following repeated requests from some residents to consider relocating the centre.

No decision has been made and Council will consider the results of the consultation in any future plans about the VIC.

Residents are encouraged to have their say through the following online survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PQXQWJJ. The survey and consultation period will close on Friday 8 April 2022.

Council will also host public consultation in-person on Wednesday 6 April, 4 pm at the Family History Room in the Goondiwindi Civic Centre. All residents are encouraged to attend to discuss the location of the VIC and provide their feedback.

Mayor of the Goondiwindi Region the Honourable Cr Lawrence Springborg AM said it was timely to reassess whether the VIC is still in the best location to meet visitors’ needs.

“The Goondiwindi VIC has been in its current location since 2015,” Cr Springborg said. “The centre has been very successful in its Bowen Lane site.

“Council has been somewhat reluctant to kick the hornet’s nest so to speak, as I know how passionate many residents feel about the VIC and its service to visitors – and one of the key factors in the current location was also to drive visitors into the main street and to local businesses,” he said. “But we have received repeated requests from some residents about the matter and it is timely to consider it.

“The successful operation of the VIC is of course dependent on the continued dedication of our team of volunteers - so their opinion will be at the forefront of any decision-making.”

Council will explore alternative options to the VIC’s current location conditional on the results of the survey and consultation. Current suggested alternatives include the Customs House Museum, which would require a reconfiguration of its current display capacity, and Council is very cognisant of any impact that this could have on the museum.

Cr Springborg, who also holds Council’s Tourism portfolio, is encouraging interested residents to have their say about the matter now.

“We will now put this matter out to residents to gauge what the community as a whole wants for the VIC,” he said. “This is about creating a long-term plan for the centre, not just looking at what might do for tomorrow.

“I understand that this has been a contested issue in the past and acknowledge that people are very passionate about the service. Please don’t wait until after the consultation period to voice your opinion – RIGHT NOW is the opportunity to voice your thoughts.

“I also want to reiterate that no decision has been made on this matter. If a decision were to be made and if any location change were supported, it would not happen immediately - it would have to be prioritised against other projects and suitable funding would have to be sourced.”

Estimates suggest more than 321,000 visitors came to the Goondiwindi Region in 2019-20, worth around $50.7 million to the local economy. Approximately 12,000 of those people visit the Goondiwindi VIC each year.

Council has recently made several significant investments in the Goondiwindi Region’s visitor economy, including the creation of the ‘Visitor Experience Coordinator’ role for the Goondiwindi Region, a suite of professional images for local businesses to use in their marketing material, and a complete overhaul of the Inglewood VIC.

Council is also continuing to explore how it can increase the value of digital tools to assist visitors.