Background

SAPPHIRE COAST HERITAGE TOURISM
 STRATEGY BRIEF

1. BACKGROUND

1.1 The Project

The project will produce a strategy to deliver heritage tourism in the Sapphire Coast.

The Sapphire Coast (the region) has rich natural, Aboriginal and European historic and cultural heritage, and boasts magnificent outdoor recreation opportunities as well as spectacular world class coastal wilderness and forested scenery. 

The region is a key component (along with Victoria’s East Gippsland) of Australia’s Coastal Wilderness National Landscape (ACW) (see National Landscapes portal on www.australia.com ).

1.2 Sapphire Coast Tourism Ltd

Sapphire Coast Tourism Ltd (SCT) is the regional tourism body for Bega Valley Shire.  Its Directors are drawn from the tourism industry, local government and the community.  SCT operates under a Business Plan based on a vision:

To identify and promote the region’s compelling visitor experiences to maximize the social, cultural, environmental and economic well being of the community through sustainable tourism.

1.3 Cultural and Heritage Tourism in the Sapphire Coast

The Business Plan has a section on Cultural and Heritage Tourism (Section 5.4) which discusses the nature of the Indigenous, historic, cultural and natural heritage in the region.  

Section 5.5 outlines plans for new tourism product.

5.5.3 Cultural and Heritage Tourism

See section 5.4. In line with the socio-demographic trends (section 3.1.4) and emerging preferred activities (section 3.2.1) the Board will develop a program to enhance cultural and heritage tourism. The Board will in particular foster partnerships with community organizations and assist where practicable with the development of cultural events, artistic programs and the provision of information and interpretation programs.

This policy is based on the report Through the looking glass: The future of domestic tourism in Australia Tourism Research Australia Feb 2008.  In relation to activities in domestic tourism the report indicated that the largest average annual growth is in cultural and heritage activities, forecast to increase by 1.7% per year on average between 2006 and 2020.

1.4 The ACW National Landscape

The Australian Government’s National Landscape initiative is identifying Australia’s top 20 superlative experiences for international tourism marketing purposes.  The initiative includes branding, master planning and management programs to deliver the promise of the brand experience to the Brand Australia target market.

The ACW offers one of Australia’s superlative icon experiences to Tourism Australia’s Brand Australia target market.  

The Target Market

There are three things enunciated by Tourism Australia as being at the core of Australia’s global tourism appeal – our people, lifestyle and environment.  There is also a global consumer who finds these assets appealing (Experience Seekers). 

National Landscapes identify those areas that provide the very best of Australia for the Experience Seeker – people who travel to experience difference and like to “get off the beaten track” and immerse themselves in local culture.  Importantly, the Experience Seeker also stays longer and travels more widely than other visitors – bringing greater benefit to Australia’s regional economies. 

For further details see:

http://www.tourism.australia.com/content/aussie_experiences/2007/experience_seekers.pdf

The ACW Brand and delivery

A destination brand has been prepared for ACW which matches the target market to the icon experience.  The next stage of the NL delivery was the preparation of a Tourism Master Plan.  The essence of the ACW world class experience is accessible temperate forested coastal wilderness.  The Master Plan sets out a suite of management proposals and the provision of visitor facilities and services to deliver the brand promise to the ‘experience seeker’ target market.  The Master Plan is not a comprehensive planning approach to regional tourism but a highly focused program aimed at a specific target market.

The Consultant should familiarise themselves with the ACW brand documentation and the ACW Tourism Master Plan.

1.5 The icing on the cake – HERITAGE TOURISM - complementary tourism product

SCT wishes to maximise the opportunities provided by the region’s recognition as a world class attraction.  This strategy is based on three elements:

Keep the target market longer

Having attracted the ‘experience seekers’ to the region SCT wishes to entice them to increase their length of stay with products that match their aspirations to learn, engage and experience.  SCT believes that, within the NL core experiences there are a further suite of outstanding attractions in the region (particularly the region’s natural, historic and cultural heritage) that will be of particular interest this market.

If you are renowned to one discerning and demanding market others will follow.

SCT is motivated by the tourism axiom:

Get the message right for the few ideal visitors and the rest will respond- always.    A cutting edge brand position statement with exceptional delivery of the brand promise will attract and audience to that brand whose depth and breadth will be astounding.  (G Whitfield).

The basis of the strategy is thus, by getting it right for one demanding market (Brand Australia’s experience seekers), the offering will have a very high degree of relevance to a range of other potential visitors, domestic and inbound.  The appeal of this element is enhanced by the finding quoted above that, re domestic tourism “ the largest average annual growth is in cultural and heritage activities, forecast to increase by 1.7% per year on average between 2006 and 2020.”

If the visitor is coming here for a top class event – keep them here

The region is becoming increasingly well known for quality cultural events, in particular the Four Winds Festival, the Merimbula Jazz Festival, the Cobargo Folk Festival and the Bermagui Sculpture on the Edge event.

The strategy will seek to provide a framework for event organisers to weave the region’s brand edge into their event presentation and promotion.

In terms of visitor numbers, the region’s strongest market appeal is coastal recreation, particularly for the Victorian and Canberra market.  This activity will probably remain the backbone of regional tourism however this activity is highly competitive with over 120 beach holiday destinations in NSW alone.  Whilst continuing to support this market in its programs SCT believes the best long term prospect for regional tourism (including coastal recreation) is establishing and delivering on the region’s competitive edge in quality experiences (in particular nature and heritage).

2 THE SCT HERITAGE TOURISM PROJECT

2.1 General

The Indigenous, historic, cultural and natural heritage product is already there in the regional landscape.  Some of it well recognised, some of it known to interest groups and some of waiting to be properly interpreted.  The Heritage Strategy project is in stages undertaken for each separate heritage element:

• • Assemblage of information
• • Presentation of the information in a form that is accessible to a enquiring potential visitor and available to guide and enhance the visitor experience
• • Provide recommendations for the required visitor facilities, services, infrastructure and management regime necessary to deliver the experiences.

2.2 The region

The project will embrace the ‘experience boundary’ concept behind the National Landscape initiative.  It will not be necessarily confined to the Shire boundaries (or the state border).  It will include those heritage related matters beyond the Shire where partnerships provide the opportunity for an enhanced experience relating to the particular heritage element under discussion.  The notional region boundary is shown in the attached map.

2.3 Heritage Elements

The Heritage Tourism Strategy will not involve a comprehensive analysis of all aspects of heritage.  The Strategy will only focus on those elements that have the potential provide a high standard experience to the target market with an emphasis on those heritage values that are particularly distinctive to the Sapphire Coast greater region.  Many of the elements will lend themselves to the presentation of distinctive experiences through themes, stories or journeys (guided or unguided) or events.  The end result will be an offering that is distinctive to the region and will establish the region’s competitive edge in relation to those heritage elements that have been featured.

The heritage elements relevant to the strategy could include:

2.3.1 Cultural heritage

• • Art galleries
• • Art colonies
• • Indigenous heritage
• • Gateways & villages
• • Events (festivals, exhibitions)
• • Pathways and routes (motor, walking and wetland)
• • Historic sites (including places and villages)
• • Museums

2.3.2 Natural Heritage

• • National parks and reserves
• • Register of National Estate places
• • State Forests
• • Geo-heritage (geology and geomorphology)*
• • Marine sites**
• • Lakes and estuaries 
• • Wildlife 
• • Visitor participation research programs 
• • Natural heritage on lands other than parks

Notes

* Geo-heritage could include the Eden Devonian fossil fish beds, the Brown Mountain gateway to the Monaro Volcanic province and the Dromedary Gondwanan rift volcano.

** - Presentation of Marine sites will primarily be associated with the Sapphire Coast Marine Discovery Centre.

2.4 Outcomes

The Heritage Tourism Strategy will, for each heritage element, where relevant:

• • Identify high quality experiences at optimal locations
• • Identify relevant experience, information, marketing, product and infrastructure gaps 
• • Provide strategies to address these gaps including relevant commercial and investment opportunities
• • Identify labour intensive heritage management programs and package them in a form where they can be readily proposed in heritage employment grant programs (in particular the Commonwealth’s $65m Heritage Grants (Jobs Fund) program – see 

http://www.environment.gov.au/heritage/programs/jobs-fund/index.html

• • Identify strategies for linkages between the heritage element on offer and other identified heritage elements in the Heritage Tourism Strategy and the presentation and promotion of the ACW brand
• • Noting existing protected area management programs, identify any additional action that may be required to ensure tourism does not negatively impact on heritage values
• • Provide a prioritised list of actions, time frames and responsibilities to ensure delivery of experiences
• • Provide internet ready web page material (including information and images) that allows the strategy to woven into the SCT web site (linked to the promposed ACW site) and be available for inclusion on regional heritage related web sites (businesses and organisations)

The experiences developed should appeal to the Brand Australia target market key drivers set out below:

Emotive	Functional	Cultural	Economics	Social
• Balanced lifestyle while on  holidays • personal development • to truly engage • meet the needs of their partners and friends • Immerse with the culture	• Contrast to everyday life • Learning experience • Opportunity to get involved with environment, people and culture • insight into their lives	• Curious about the world • More complex than other market segments	• Look for good value • Want destinations to intrude into their awareness • Always looking to save their money and to spend it on the actual experience	• Deeper, more complex • Want personal development • Question the norms • Do not want to be seen as a tourist.

2.5 Matching experiences with locations

Experiences will be identified by location within the project boundary.  The project should include information on how best to deliver experiences  (e.g thematic precincts, stories, journeys, corridors, events) that deliver the experience without having regard to tenure (to allow policy makers to be aware of all options).  The strategy should identify any issues or management actions that are necessary due to tenure based planning matters applying to affected lands.

Any servicing and infrastructure requirements for a particular experience should also be addressed.  

2.6 Precinct and gateway planning

The experience outcomes of the above process, as designated for identified precincts (and journeys, corridors etc) will be further refined by stipulating the required facilities and services that the target market will require to have a high class experience.  These facilities and services may include (but not be limited to):

• • infrastructure needs (e.g water, energy, access, waste management)
• • support services needs
• • skills needs
• • information needs (including pre and post visit)

(Many of the heritage elements may not require any further facilities and services)

The precinct planning should, where ever practicable, prescribe use of suitable existing infrastructure such as accommodation, access, energy, waste treatment and water supplies.  It may identify where these elements need to be upgraded to facilitate heritage tourism outcomes.

The project may make recommendations about grouping themes, corridors or journeys into a single marketable entity.  The project should also identify key gateway sites to particular themes or journeys.

The strategy should identify specific employment projects that will deliver heritage outcomes presented in a form suitable for grant applications.

2.7 Strategy for provision of information to the target market

The availability of high quality information is critical to the engagement of the target market.  This must be in a form that stimulates an enquirer to commit to a visit and then enriches the visit in terms of value adding to the experience through the availability of quality information.

The project will provide recommendations for the assemblage and maintenance of relevant information that will be used to inform a web site development process.  The recommendations will include the nature of the information that will be available to stimulate the interest and expectations of the target market and the themes under which the information will be assembled and presented.  Information will allow for idiosyncratic interests of visitors to be accommodated, such as information on flora, fauna (particularly birdlife), marine and aquatic systems, geology, geomorphology, historic and pre-historic cultural heritage.  

2.8 Regional Planning and Management

The project will adopt an integrated and regional approach to land use across the suite of regional tenures.  The plan should promote a strategic basis for future land use decisions and may identify opportunities for:

• • Zoning and/or architectural guidelines that protect elements of the experiences.
• • Changes to local government plans that may alleviate barriers to private investment and support the provision of infrastructure.
• • Protected area management planning to achieve elements of the heritage tourism strategy.

3 CONSULTANCY DETAILS

3.1 Governance

The Strategy will be prepared under the supervision of the Sapphire Coast Heritage Tourism Committee.  The Chairman of the Committee will be the project manager.

3.2 Public Consultation

The Heritage Strategy will be prepared in consultation with community and stakeholder groups as advised by the project manager.  For the purposes of quotation the consultants should plan on three intra-region forums. 

A draft Heritage Tourism Strategy will be released for public comment.  The plan will be finalised under direction of the Sapphire Coast Heritage Tourism Committee through the project manager.

Selection Criteria

Selection of the preferred consultant to deliver the project will be based on the following criteria: 

• • Demonstrated understanding of the brief and scope of work 
• • Suitability of the proposed methodology 
• • Understanding of Brand Australia and the target market 
• • Understanding of the National Landscapes initiative 
• • Demonstrated experience in working in multi stakeholder environment
• • High level facilitation and communication skills 
• • Ability to deliver on time and on budget 
• • Relevant experience, qualifications and technical skills of individuals who will contribute to the Heritage Tourism Strategy (include - copies of resumes and details of which individuals will complete key tasks - details of similar projects and relevant experience undertaken in recent years including names of clients for whom similar work has been undertaken and from whom references may be obtained) 

Short listed consultants may be asked to present in person to the Heritage Tourism Committee.

Project Timing

The consultant will provide a detailed timeline of the project.  It is expected that a final report would be delivered no later than 20 weeks after engagement.  Consultation should be scheduled to avoid peak school holiday periods.  As a guideline for the preparation of the detailed timeline the notional reporting benchmarks will be, end of:

• • Week 2 – Works plan submitted to project manager for endorsement
• • Week 6 – Interim report on heritage experiences inventory (sites, themes, journeys and events) submitted to project manager
• • Week 8 – proposed Draft Heritage Tourism Strategy submitted to project manager
• • Week 14 – Draft Heritage Tourism Strategy released for public consultation
• • Week 18 – Public consultation on Draft Strategy concluded
• • Week 20 – Final Report delivered to SCT Board

Reporting

The consultant is required to

• • Have regular liaison with the project manager (e.g. fortnightly updates):
• • Deliver a final presentation to the project manager and the SCT Board.
• • Deliver a final plan in a soft and hard copy to the project manager

Attachment 1 to Annexure 1 – Extracts SCT Business Plan

5.4 CULTURAL AND HERITAGE TOURISM

The Sapphire Coast has a number of music festivals of different size and complexity.

These include the well established:

• Cobargo Folk Festival

• Merimbula Jazz Festival

• The bi annual Four Winds Music Festival

• And the emerging annual South Coast “Rocks”

Most of these festivals attract large numbers of visitors and artists from within and

outside the Shire and have the potential for growth.

In addition to these are the Eden Whale Festival and Bermagui Seaside Fair with its distinctive Sculpture on the Edge. Both of these local festivals have the potential to further develop distinctive characteristic.

These festivals could be supported by SCT through partnerships such as through promotion and publicity, sponsorship, accommodation packages.

5.4.1 Galleries and Museums

There are a large number of galleries and museums in the shire. These can be divided into two distinctive types: Commercial Galleries and the non-for profit community history museums and the Regional Gallery.

a. The Bermagui to Tathra arts trail is a good example of beneficial co-operation in marketing in the commercial gallery and private artist studio sector. As a model it could be promoted to other businesses in the Shire.

b. The Eden Killer Whale Museum is an iconic community run Museum. As well as its permanent static displays it regularly hosts visiting exhibitions from other major collecting institutions as well as special local exhibitions. It has a dedicated team of local volunteers who manage the museum with some paid full time staff. It needs on going support. There are also a number of other historical societies and museums. Bega and Merimbula are very active and have permanent exhibitions and historic buildings of note. They would appear to be underutilised and perhaps some work needs to be done to develop their tourism potential.

c. The Bega Regional Gallery. Has an annual program of exhibitions from local and national artists. Its exhibition program is planned up to two years in advance. It is recognized nationally for the biennial ShirleyHannan award for portraiture. It has a growing public program and has just appointed a new part time curator. All the staff at the gallery are part time and it relies on volunteers. The Board considers there is considerable potential for partnerships for example in developing a major coastal wilderness landscape art prize and facilitating residences and workshops in visual arts in the landscape.

d. There may also be opportunities in the development of working relationships with bodies such South East Arts Region and education institutions.

5.4.2 Listed historic heritage places

There are 61 listings in Bega Valley Shire on the Register of the National Estate and

the NSW Heritage Register. 27 of these listings relates to historic heritage:

Barn at Penders Haighs Rd, Tanja

Bega Courthouse Carp St, Bega

Bega Primary School Group 25-33 Auckland St, Bega,

Bittangabee Ruins Bittangabee Bay, Eden

Boydtown Group 87 Boydtown Park Rd, Boydtown

Bridge House Group Princes Hwy, Brogo

CBC Bank (former) 21 Auckland Street, Bega

Church Ruins 87 Boydtown Park Rd, Boydtown

Courthouse / Police Station and Cell Block (former) 26-30 Toalla St, Pambula

Courunga Monaro Street, Merimbula,

Courunga House, Grounds and Trees Monaro St, Tura Beach

Davidson Whaling Station 35km south of, Eden

Eden Courthouse 233 Imlay St, Eden

Edrom Lodge Edrom Road, Eden

Green Cape Lighthouse and Residences Group, Eden

House 21 Auckland St, Bega

Jellat Jellat Tathra Rd, Bega

Montreal Goldfield Wallaga Lake Rd, Bermagui

Ness Property Reserve Road, Wapengo

New Buildings Bridge over Towamba River Wyndham

Oaklands Princes Highway, Pambula

Panbula Goldfield Pambula

Rosevear Jewellers Shopfront 165 Carp St, Bega

School and Residence (former) 85-87 Main St, Merimbula

Sea Horse Inn 87 Boydtown Park Rd, Boydtown

Tathra Wharf and Reserve Wharf Rd, Tathra

Yowaka Bridge near Eden

Each listed place has a statement relating to the heritage values of the site. Some

sites, for example the Montreal Goldfields, are already heritage tourism attractions

managed by enthusiastic community groups.

There may be opportunities for a SCT/Eurobodalla partnership with the regional

historic and Indigenous heritage precinct that encompasses Cobargo, the Tilba

(including Gulaga) sites and Montreal Goldfield.

5.4.3 Natural Heritage

There are 30 nationally listed natural heritage places, each with a story to tell:

Acacia Constablei Site, East Boyd State Forest Eden

Bell Bird Creek Nature Reserve Princes Hwy, Eden

Ben Boyd National Park Princes Hwy, Eden

Bermaguee Nature Reserve Head of Cuttagee Rd, Bermagui

Bournda Nature Reserve Kalaru Merimbula Rd, Wolumla

Box Range Shrub Community Sites Pambula

Boyds Tower Fish Fossils Eden

Dr George Mountain Bega

Eden Geological Site Bramble St, Eden

Egan Peaks Nature Reserve Fire Rd, Towamba

Kianinny Bay Acacia Georgensis Site Tathra

Mimosa Rocks National Park (1980 boundary)

Mount Imlay National Park

Mount Poole Area, Yambulla State Forest

Mumbulla Mountain (Biamanga)

Murunna Point Coastal Area

Nadgee Nature Reserve

Nadgee Wilderness Area

Narrabarba Hill Area, Nadgee State Forest

Nethercote Waterfall and Associated Rhyolite Outcrops Pambula,

Nullica State Forest Pseudanthus Site

Old Hut Creek Phebalium Site 2 Back Creek Fire Rd, Nethercote

Pomaderris sp nov Site, Yambulla State Forest Eden

Shrub Community Sites, Nullica State Forest Back Creek Trl, Pambula

Swamp Road Area, Nadgee State Forest

Wadbilliga National Park

Wallaga Lake National Park

Yowaka Forest Area / Egan Peaks Extension Area Burragate Fire Rd, Eden

Zieria Sp Box Range North Site, Pambula

Zieria Sp Nov Site (Lochiel) Pambula

Note - the listed places’ heritage values is available on the internet on the Register of the National Estate site.

5.4.4 Indigenous heritage

There are some indigenous heritage sites on the heritage registers. The whole landscape however can be interpreted under its Indigenous heritage values and archaeological material abounds in countless coastal and inland locations. There is a wealth of opportunity for Indigenous heritage to be interpreted to interested visitors through the participation of the local Indigenous community.

5.4.5 Natural Marine Heritage – The Marine Discovery Centre

The Sapphire Coast comprises 225km of coastline that presents a wealth of coastal biodiversity. The area is especially interesting because of its location at the meeting of the warm, nutrient poor tropical waters of the Great Barrier Reef region and the cold, nutrient rich waters from the Southern Ocean.

A key element in the movement of waters here is the East Australian Current, a body of buoyant tropical water that flows south along the coast. The meeting of the East Australian Current and the dense cold waters from the south gives rise to a series of eastward moving eddies. These dynamic oceanic processes give rise to a complex mosaic of marine environments and a unique mix of tropical and temperate marine species.

The scientific interest in the biota and processes along this coast is heightened by the impacts of climate change. The Tasman Sea is warming and there is an observed shift southward of the East Australian Current. The impacts of these changes are already being observed in the distribution of marine species along the coast. In terms of the study of climate change and its impacts, the Sapphire Coast can be described as a scientific ‘hot spot’ which could reveal much about the chemical and biological changes that are occurring and will continue to occur, and give some insights into changing weather patterns.

This area will be of increasing interest to visitors interested in marine interpretation and study. The Eden Marine Discovery Centre is very well placed to play a major role in serving this class of visitor.