Approximately 86% of all Australian businesses have been adversely affected since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Glenorchy is no exception.
Modelling suggests the sectors of the Glenorchy economy most likely to be impacted by COVID-19 are retail, accommodation and food services and arts and recreation, with primary driver of this being reduced local demand. Glenorchy workers are particularly vulnerable due to our City’s high employment specialisation in the retail arts and recreation sectors.
When the COVID-19 crisis emerged in 2020, Council identified a suite of projects aimed at stimulating Glenorchy’s economy to ensure our City could both weather the initial storm, and also bounce back from the pandemic stronger than before. These projects have been underway since late 2020 and while some are now complete and helping to rebuild and sustain the Glenorchy economy, some others are still ongoing.
The Glenorchy Economic Recovery Program achieved national recognition in 2021, beating over one hundred entries from across the country to win the Economic Recovery and Resilience category at the Economic Development Australia 2021 Awards for Excellence.
Details of our economic stimulus projects funded under the Glenorchy Economic Recovery Program are provided below.
Activity City is a website and business development program to encourage residents to buy local and to support local businesses to adapt. Under the program, we contact our businesses and advise of support options available from governments.
Activity City also helps businesses promote themselves online, particularly to our local residents and help them to operate in the new context.
The Greater Glenorchy Plan sets out visionary precinct plans for the Glenorchy, Moonah, and Claremont CBDs based on their identities, roles and functions, which will guide future development within the Greater Glenorchy area to the year 2040.
The project was originally envisaged as part of Council’s Economic Development Strategy and was fast-tracked as a part of the Economic Recovery Program.
The Greater Glenorchy Plan was created following last year’s community campaign, Beyond the Curtain, which involved interviewing residents to describe identities of the three CBDs.
Learn more about and download the Greater Glenorchy Plan here
Initially developed as virtual network, this creative and cultural business hub supports artists and makers to identify co-working spaces in areas such as untenanted shops, ensuring out CBD precincts remain active and to ‘spread the Mona effect’. It includes the facilitation of multicultural and maker markets in our City.
Showcase Moonah activities included a community painted mural by artist Melski McVee on the side of the Subway building (corner of Main Road and Hopkins Street). Across the life of the project, we had Guerrilla Greening, Dancin’ in the Street, lane way activations, musical performances and the To the North Pop Up Community Market on Albert Road in June, 2020.
More information on what Showcase was all about can be found here
Showcase Moonah was an initiative from our Economic Development team which assisted in activating our CBD areas while promoting local businesses and creators.
In November 2021, Showcase received national recognition, taking out the Economic Development Diversity and Inclusion category at the Economic Development Australia 2021 Awards for Excellence.
Glenorchy is home to major sport, recreation and entertainment facilities all within walking distance to each other. This cluster is at a key stage in its growth with the potential to be one of Tasmania’s major sporting and entertainment precincts and to become the sporting and event heart for Hobart.
Key facilities in the precinct include MyState Bank Arena (formerly Derwent Entertainment Centre), Elwick Racecourse, KGV Precinct, Hobart Showgrounds, Wilkinsons Point and the YMCA, with Mona within walking distance of the precinct. Many of these facilities are embarking on substantial redevelopment with Tasmanian Government contributing significant investments in the precinct, including the:
- Redevelopment of the MyState Bank Arena ($83.5m),
- Redevelopment of the Hobart Showgrounds ($42.1m), and
- Activation of the Northern Suburbs Transit Corridor (initial investment of $25m)
Glenorchy City Council recognises the potential of the wider precinct and has embarked on developing an overarching masterplan for the precinct and has adopted the interim name ‘Glenorchy Park’. Like similar precincts around Australia, such as Albert Park in Melbourne or Moore Park in Sydney, we aspire for Glenorchy Park to be a recognisable city-defining brand. A well-connected, thriving and vibrant precinct that delivers sport, entertainment, tourism and cultural facilities for the community and broader region.
The detailed Glenorchy Park Masterplan (available here) has examined the supporting infrastructure, relationship of existing key facilities, transport planning and parking impacts and has developed an overall urban design vision for the precinct.
The Masterplan has undergone an initial round of community consultation, and will now be further developed before being formally adopted later in 2021.
This project will has helped spread the ‘Mona effect’ by developing creative art content along the Intercity Cycleway.
The project saw the installation of 10 new murals along the Intercity Cycleway between Moonah and MONA creating an exciting new arts-tourism attraction for our city.
This project will invest in infrastructure improvements to the caravan park to make the area ‘shovel ready’ for development. Mona will redevelop the Caravan Park on land leased from Council, including works on roads, parking, utilities, landscaping and pathways. Council would look at a long-term lease to Mona, who would develop and operate the facility.
The Glenorchy Mountain Bike Masterplan proposes a cycling hub at Tolosa Park, bringing together BMX with the criterium cycling and Mountain Bike park. The relocation is also aligned with the draft Berriedale Masterplan and with the strategic direction of Southern City BMX club. The BMX track at Berriedale does not meet the current requirements for racing and moving to Tolosa Park would provide all year activity at the site. As part of a broader cycling hub, the location of the BMX club in the area would help kids with skill development and safe entry into this sport.
This project sees Council working with developers, public and private service providers to progress the development of a multifunctional civic heart for the Glenorchy CBD.
It will include, grants to small businesses to ‘activate’, multipurpose meeting space/s, markets, and outdoor eating.
The project will utilise the Prince of Wales Bay Marine and Defence Precinct and Tasmanian Maritime Network through the development of a Masterplan and Council investment in connecting infrastructure (the Zinc-Link).
Closer integration with the Tasmanian Technopark and Derwent Park businesses will create positive ‘spill over’ as local businesses network and learn from our state’s top innovators and international exporters.
The Marine and Innovation Precinct Masterplan is now complete, and a copy can be found here