Council, Chamber takes on lack of accommodation
Housing Shortage
The lack of affordable accommodation in the Douglas Shire continues to plague businesses and Douglas Shire Council and the Douglas Chamber of Commerce have joined forces in a campaign to obtain funding from the government.
And Council is looking for anecdotal accounts of difficulty business are experiencing with attracting or retaining staff due to the lack of affordable accommodation in the Shire, according to a Chamber spokesperson.
“The rationale behind this is to compile a comprehensive list which they will present to government for their advocacy to obtain funding from the government to address the issue.
“Recent grants designed to repair the damage that COVD shutdowns and the cessation of international travel has done to the industry, are directed toward marketing to attract tourists back to FNQ,” the spokesperson said.
Financial injection
However, the spokesperson said, unless there are workers available to provide the services tourism companies offer, the financial injection will not achieve its purpose.
“Council is looking at how it can assist with worker housing and will advocate that a portion of the grants should be used to address the worker accommodation issue.”
If your company has experienced, or is experiencing staffing issues because of the lack of suitable/affordable accommodation, you are encouraged to provide a submission (it does not have to be lengthy unless you choose to make it so), that we can forward to the Douglas Shire Council.
You can send your submission to: admin@douglaschamber.com.au
Douglas Shire Small Business Forum
The Douglas Chamber will be coordinating a Small Business Forum at the Tin Shed on Tuesday May 17.
The speakers are the Hon Di Farmer, Minister for Employment and Small Business; and Cynthia Lui, Member for Cook.
Attendees will be encouraged to ask questions, share experiences and discuss concerns about small business in your area.
Details:
What: Small Business Forum
Where: The Tin Shed, 7 Ashford Avenue, Port Douglas
When: Tuesday May 17
Time: 10:00 for 10:30am start
Close: 12:15pm
RSVP: May 10 latest to: cook@parliament.qld.gov.au