CLOSED – BROKE & DEPARTED:

CBD usually means Central Business District with exceptions like York, where the definition does not quite fit, with businesses having gone broke, shop doors closed and the former proprietors usually leaving town. Even Thompson’s, the undertaker, operating within an aging population demographic- has now dearly departed. 

This means the CBD could be described as looking like an old grand piano with lots of keys missing.

Photographs are considered to be worth a thousand words. So how much is this collage

actually worth?

There are at least 13 For Sale or  Lease  signs in York’s central CBD with at least 13 business properties empty- with a current valuation of next to worthless.

Overall York’s main artery, Avon Terrace, could be diagnosed as suffering from pre-mortem angina.

However should this baker’s dozen have tenants with each being occupied by a permanent, well managed and marketed, appropriate small business then the valuation would be entirely different. In fact it would be extremely financially positive.

Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data and local economic demographics including potential population growth, commercial rental valuations, domestic rental valuations  and/ or property purchase and additional wage components, there would be at least an extra  $2 million annual input into  the local economy.

Then you try and forget the half a plethora (6?) of local Bed & Breakfast establishments on the market, that given York’s current economic climate, and CEO Paul Martin’s new buzzword “multiyear’ (that could become ‘multigenerational’) may remain close to empty and unsold for decades to come.

Included in the diminished CBD is a Commercially Bad Direction- the 'pop-up shop'.

It is considered a fad, at best a short term solution, relying on ultra cheap rental costs, resulting from an oversupply of vacant retail business space. Not good economic modelling by those responsible for York’s future commercial direction of its main commercial boulevard - the SHIRE OF YORK.

It is “low rent’! The general public and tourists are fully aware of what kind of stock is sold, either discontinued lines and salvage lines, plus other cheap junk. It is just to keep one door slightly ajar and is downmarket, projecting a lack of ambience, is poorly thought out commercial future and is denigrating to York’s historic charm.   .

It also projects a very poor image to locals, all visitors and the serious business developer and investor.

So who, individually, bears the overall responsibility for the CBD, meaning, arguably, Clearing Bad Decision marking and, probably a Catastrophic Business Direction?

There is the usual suspects, the possibly moribund Shire President and his mainly stultified Council, the suspected directionless CEO and in this case his CDO/EDO Esmeralda Harmer who appears to have little, if any, promotional, marketing and business experience/acumen at the required level.

These possible inadequacies should not reflect too badly on Ms. Harmer, after all it is Paul Martin who has the ultimate responsibility.

I am told their answer is to throw rate money at tawdry festivals, How many festivals, how tawdry they are and if any of them will ever be truly successful is the unanswered rate payer funded question.

I believe one is going to be a mudslide which lends itself to the promotional blurb “ Come visit York for a Dirty Weekend”. (Maybe funny- but also tacky!).

Or “Get your ICE in York’ promoting a miniscule kiddies ice rink to the plebs through the possibility of a risqué slogan.

This is at a time when tourism in WA, particularly in the national and international markets is underperforming to put it mildly. This leaves local tourism operators and tourist towns fighting over which local niche market scraps are left.

Given who should be leading the propaganda, marketing and promotional charge to improve York’s visitor future is the Shire, there is no good reason to feel any confidence.

It has the website, but lacks a competitive standard of communication skills to use this platform properly.

You can add to this what tourists and festival goers do not particular like doing is staring through empty shop windows. It is totally boring and extremely depressing.

Maybe Paul Martin should contemplate whether any festival frenzy is putting the cart before the horse?

Then again,. probably the Shire can neither afford the cart or the horse and York is now well and truly caught between Wave Rock and a hard place on the tourist map.

Martin and Co were told 16 months ago what could stimulate public, overnight stays, in York.

It was to light some of the buildings up with lantern slide projections, turning the town into an innovate, historic, hi-tech visual wonderland using West Australian Newspapers and the J.S Battye Library’s collection of superb, rural and Indigenous photographic images dating back to the 1890’s.

They either did not like the idea, considering it to be way too avant-guarde and visionary- or they could not afford the electricity bill. Probably both!

It is also getting to the stage,  in York, when a gathering of more than 250 people at a given time, could not rely on being adequately fed and accommodated to the personal standards required by individual tourists.

As a one-off ,the iconic CWA Cookbook turns 72  this year lending itself to a country food festival featuring classic recipes dating back 7 decades. There are synergies, WA’s oldest  inland town celebrates with an outstanding not-for-profit organization that has focussed on improving the conditions and lifestyle of rural women and children for the past 96 years.

It changes the dynamics from food festival, to an historic ‘Australiana’ food festival.

Does the Shire of York have the ability, or visionary thought processes to project its community as a must visit, must see tourism venue. Currently -No it does not!

Would it have the foresight to at least investigate the commercial potential and financial return possible by promoting itself as ‘Rainbow’ friendly. Of course not!

All Rural Shires may have to tread very carefully in future regarding its local, potentially self-centred, possibly discriminatory ‘Principles’ and ‘Guidelines’, allegedly based on minority decisions, with inadequate knowledge of the laws or statutes involved, placing inappropriate and unconscionable commercial restraints on current and future local business investment and development.

The Shire of York has done this before!

Remember that individual councillors throughout the State, in  future, can and will be sacked by the State Government.

Possibly for more reasons than you think, hopefully including collusive interference in restraint of trade and private investment when inconsistent with Federal and, State government laws, including being measured against enforceable, legitimate, local community expectations.

That means that if any Shire precludes a development for inadequate, inconsequential reasons- bordering on lunacy, individual councillors and the CEO may find themselves with legal letters demanding an explanation for their actions.

At the same time this developer should be contacting programs such as ‘Today Tonight’ to place the Shire’s attitudes and decisions in the public arena.

If it is York and given the possibility of a controversy and a bad viewer reaction you could expect a news-crew to come screaming up The Great Southern Highway  at an average 95kph, because it is too dangerous to go faster. (They may ask why the speed limit has dropped from 110 to 100?)

I am sure that neither the Shire President, Councillors or the CEO will be particularly enamoured by being door-stopped.

One other thing, that some citizens of York should have a light-bulb moment about- Social Media sites are here to stay. Get used to it or through your own positive community actions ensure there are no horrific Shire Council decisions, exploding domestic rates, or any other lack of action worth writing about.

It appears that after a social media expose, the Shire has spent four days cleaning up the mess that is the Historic York Cemetery.

Did you cause this to happen? Highly doubtful!

So when you bitch about Social Media is damaging York’s reputation, look in the mirror and see the real culprit, the head in the sand ostrich that is the deathly silent majority, silently damaging York over the past decade.

David Taylor.