Post-fire plan for business

By Kath Gannaway
BUSINESS recovery will be part of an overall strategy to get Yarra Ranges back on its feet following the devastating February bushfires.
At a crisis meeting held on Monday 16 February in Healesville, business operators from Yarra Glen and Healesville met with Shire of Yarra Ranges CEO Glenn Patterson to put their case for what they said was immediate action to help businesses which have been impacted immediately and in the aftermath of the fires.
Mr Patterson said the shire had acted quickly to put in place a municipal recovery committee headed by ex-grants committee chairman John Lester and Mr Patterson and regional directors for various State Government departments.
Four sub-committees will deal with community recovery, rebuilding, infrastructure and business recovery.
Mr Patterson told the Mail the business recovery sub-committee had met on Friday and would be addressing many of the issues raised at the meeting earlier in the week.
Members of the Yarra Glen and Healesville chambers of commerce, the Yarra Valley Food Group and other local business operators are represented on the sub-committee along with shire and state and federal government, and industry organisation representatives.
Yarra Glen B&B operator and chamber member Marjorie Woolands echoed what many around the table were saying.
“A lot of local businesses have been called on to help and have been helping … a lot of people are on the brink,” she said.
Several people said they had had lay-off staff, or cut hours and were concerned for their welfare in the face of a dramatic reduction in visitors to the Yarra Valley in the past two weeks.
Economic development officer Simon O’Callaghan urged employers to direct staff who had been disadvantaged to apply to the relief centres in Yarra Glen and Healesville.
There were calls for the $15m Yarra Glen Bypass to be scrapped and the money redirected to more urgent infrastructure which would provide additional drawcards to the valley.
Yarra Glen supermarket developer Chris O’Connor said many parts of the valley were unaffected by the fires and urged action on a winter campaign to highlight the attractions of the valley in what has traditionally been the off-season.
“If we have lost 20 per cent of the valley, then 80 per cent is as it was,” said YGCC member Chris Lamacraft who proposed an immediate campaign aimed at the Easter holiday market.
Local people had a vital role to play in keeping businesses afloat according to Sally Brown of Healesville Jewellers.
“I don’t think people out there realise businesses are doing it tough – just how knife-edge it is for many businesses,” she said.
“Buy local has never been more important,” she said urging a local media campaign to encourage Yarra Valley families to support the businesses by spending their money where it will count.
Mr Patterson said the shire had provided funding to Yarra Valley Regional Marketing to immediately set up a website YarraValleyToday.com.au aimed at getting the message out that the Yarra Valley was open for businesses.