Agenda of Economic and Cultural Development Committee

Item No.	Item Title	Page No.
	Confirmation of Minutes
1	Confirmation of Minutes of the Economic and Cultural Development Committee No. 2025(02) of 18 March 2025	7
	Officers’ Reports
2	Quarterly Event Sponsorship and Ticket Allocation Report January 2025 - March 2025	13
3	**Nicholas Street Precinct - March 2025 Nicholas Street Precinct Project Control Group	17
	Notices of Motion
	Matters Arising
	Questions / General Business

Economic and Cultural Development Committee NO. 2025(03)

22 April 2025

AGENDA

Welcome to Country or Acknowledgement of Country

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST IN MATTERS ON THE AGENDA

BUSINESS OUTSTANDING

Confirmation of Minutes

1. Confirmation of Minutes of the Economic and Cultural Development Committee No. 2025(02) of 18 March 2025

Recommendation

That the minutes of the Economic and Cultural Development Committee held on
18 March 2025 be confirmed.

Officers’ Reports

2. Quarterly Event Sponsorship and Ticket Allocation Report January 2025 - March 2025

This is a report concerning event sponsorship approved in the period of 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 as required under the Event Sponsorship Policy.

Recommendation

A. That Council receive and note the following event sponsorship allocations during the 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 period:

Event Sponsorship Category 2 over $15,000 (excl. GST) endorsed by Council:

· Ipswich Show Society $35,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Ipswich Show

· Ipswich Turf Club $20,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Ipswich Cup

· Willowbank Raceway Incorporated $35,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Gulf Western Oil Winternationals

B. That Council receive and note the following event sponsorship ticket allocations made during the 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 period:

· 2025 CMC Rocks, 35 corporate hospitality tickets for advocacy and capacity building purposes

C. That Council receive and note that no event impact study support was confirmed during the 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 period.

3. **Nicholas Street Precinct - March 2025 Nicholas Street Precinct Project Control Group

This is a report concerning the March 2025 Nicholas Street Precinct (NSP) Project Control Group (PCG) meeting focussing on the status of the leasing program and the planning, development, delivery and ongoing management of the NSP.

Recommendation

That the March 2025 NSP PCG Report be received and the contents noted.

NOTICES OF MOTION

MATTERS ARISING

QUESTIONS / GENERAL BUSINESS

Economic and Cultural Development Committee

Meeting Agenda

22 April

2025

Economic and Cultural Development Committee NO. 2025(02)

18 March 2025

Minutes

COUNCILLORS’ ATTENDANCE:

Councillor Pye Augustine (Chairperson); Councillors Marnie Doyle (Deputy Chairperson), Mayor Teresa Harding, Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic, Jacob Madsen, Andrew Antoniolli (via teams), David Martin and Jim Madden

COUNCILLOR’S APOLOGIES:

Nil

OFFICERS’ ATTENDANCE:

Chief Executive Officer (Sonia Cooper), General Manager Community, Cultural and Economic Development (Ben Pole), Manager, Marketing and Promotions (Carly Gregory), General Manager Asset and Infrastructure Services (Seren McKenzie), General Manager Corporate Services (Matt Smith), Chief of Staff – Office of the Mayor (Melissa Fitzgerald), Precinct Director – Nicholas Street Precinct (James Hepburn), Precinct Governance Manager – Nicholas Street Precinct (Mitchell Grant), Manager Media Communications and Engagement (Mark Strong), Senior Media Officer (Darrell Giles) Theatre Technician (Harrison Cate) and Theatre Technician (Tom Haag)

Welcome to Country or Acknowledgement of Country

Councillor Pye Augustine (Chairperson) invited Councillor Marnie Doyle (Deputy Chairperson) to deliver the Acknowledgement of Country

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST IN MATTERS ON THE AGENDA

In accordance with section 150EM of the Local Government Act 2009, Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic informed the meeting that she has a prescribed conflict of interest in Item 2 titled Event Sponsorship - 2025 Ipswich Cup.

The nature of the prescribed conflict of interest is that Deputy Mayor Jonic is a member of the executive, the Treasurer of the Ipswich Turf Club Incorporated.

Deputy Mayor Jonic advised that she will leave the meeting room (including any area set aside for the public) while this matter is being discussed and voted on.

In accordance with section 150EQ of the Local Government Act 2009, Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic informed the meeting that she has a declarable conflict of interest in Item 3 titled 2025 Gulf Western Oil Winternationals - Event Sponsorship.

The nature of the interest is that Deputy Mayor Jonic’s family holds a life family pass to the Willowbank Raceway.

Councillor Nicole Jonic invited the other councillors to determine if she can continue to participate in the decision process.

It was moved by Councillor Pye Augustine and seconded by Councillor Marnie Doyle that Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic may participate in the meeting in relation to the matter, including by voting on the matter because there is no personal or financial benefit to the councillor and therefore a reasonable person would trust that the final decision is made in the public interest.

The eligible councillors present at the meeting decided that Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic may participate in the meeting in relation to the matter, including by voting on the matter.

AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE

Councillors: Councillors:

Augustine Nil

Doyle

Harding

Madsen

Antoniolli

Martin

Madden

Councillor Jonic did not take part in the vote on this matter.

The motion was put and carried.

PRESENTATION – TAFE QUEENSLAND IN THE IPSWICH REGION

Due to time constraints the presentation from Kate Venables, the General Manager South West Region of TAFE Queensland will be made to a future meeting regarding TAFE Queensland in the Ipswich Region.

BUSINESS OUTSTANDING

Nil

Confirmation of Minutes

1. Confirmation of Minutes of the Economic and Cultural Development Committee No. 2025(01) of 18 February 2025

Recommendation

Moved by Councillor Pye Augustine:

Seconded by Councillor Marnie Doyle:

That the minutes of the Economic and Cultural Development Committee held on 18 February 2025 be confirmed.

AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE

Councillors: Councillors:

Augustine Nil

Doyle

Harding

Jonic

Madsen

Antoniolli

Martin

Madden

The motion was put and carried.

Officers’ Reports

Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic left the meeting at 12.36 pm due to a previously declared interest in Item 2.

2. Event Sponsorship - 2025 Ipswich Cup

This is a report concerning an application for Event Sponsorship by the Ipswich Turf Club, requesting financial support of the Ipswich Cup, to be held on Saturday 21 June 2025.

Recommendation

Moved by Councillor Pye Augustine:

Seconded by Councillor David Martin:

That Ipswich Turf Club receives $20,000 excl. GST financial support for the Ipswich Cup 2025.

AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE

Councillors: Councillors:

Augustine Nil

Doyle

Harding

Madsen

Antoniolli

Martin

Madden

All Councillors except Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic were present when the vote was taken.

The motion was put and carried.

Deputy Mayor Nicole Jonic returned to the meeting at 12.39 pm.

*3. 2025 Gulf Western Oil WinterNationals - Event Sponsorship

This is a report concerning an application for Event Sponsorship by Willowbank Raceway Incorporated, requesting financial support of the 2025 Gulf Western Oil Winternationals, to be held from Thursday 5 June to Sunday 8 June 2025.

Recommendation

Moved by Councillor Pye Augustine:

Seconded by Councillor Marnie Doyle:

That Willowbank Raceway Incorporated receives $35,000 excl. GST financial support for the 2025 Gulf Western Oil Winternationals.

AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE

Councillors: Councillors:

Augustine Nil

Doyle

Harding

Jonic

Madsen

Antoniolli

Martin

Madden

The motion was put and carried.

4. Nicholas Street Precinct - February 2025 Nicholas Street Precinct Project Control Group

This is a report concerning the February 2025 Nicholas Street Precinct Project Control Group meeting focussing on the status of the leasing program and associated developments for the retail component of the Nicholas Street Precinct redevelopment.

“The attachment/s to this report are confidential in accordance with section 254J(3)(g) of the Local Government Regulation 2012.”

Recommendation

Moved by Councillor Pye Augustine:

Seconded by Councillor Marnie Doyle:

That the February 2025 Nicholas Street Precinct Project Control Group Report be received and the contents noted.

AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE

Councillors: Councillors:

Augustine Nil

Doyle

Harding

Jonic

Madsen

Antoniolli

Martin

Madden

The motion was put and carried.

NOTICES OF MOTION

Nil

MATTERS ARISING

Nil

QUESTIONS / GENERAL BUSINESS

Nil

PROCEDURAL MOTIONS AND FORMAL MATTERS

The meeting commenced at 12.30 pm.

The meeting closed at 12.47 pm.

Economic and Cultural Development Committee

Meeting Agenda

22 April

2025

Doc ID No: A11471134

ITEM: 2

SUBJECT: Quarterly Event Sponsorship and Ticket Allocation Report January 2025 - March 2025

AUTHOR: Manager, Marketing and Promotions

DATE: 10 April 2025

Executive Summary

This is a report concerning event sponsorship approved in the period of 1 January 2025 to
31 March 2025 as required under the Event Sponsorship Policy.

Recommendation/s

A. That Council receive and note the following event sponsorship allocations during the 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 period:

Event Sponsorship Category 2 over $15,000 (excl. GST) endorsed by Council:

· Ipswich Show Society $35,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Ipswich Show

· Ipswich Turf Club $20,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Ipswich Cup

· Willowbank Raceway Incorporated $35,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Gulf Western Oil Winternationals

B. That Council receive and note the following event sponsorship ticket allocations made during the 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 period:

· 2025 CMC Rocks, 35 corporate hospitality tickets for advocacy and capacity building purposes

C. That Council receive and note that no event impact study support was confirmed during the 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 period.

RELATED PARTIES

• Ipswich Show Society

• Ipswich Turf Club

• Willowbank Raceway Incorporated

• CMC Rocks

There are no discernible related party conflicts of interest associated with the report or its recommendations.

ifuture Theme

Vibrant and Growing

Purpose of Report/Background

Council’s event sponsorship program is a direct outcome and delivery action of the City Events Plan:

• To attract, support and produce a diverse program of annual events that engage the community, promote Ipswich as a destination, drive visitation and positively impact on business and industry.

Council’s event sponsorship program is a direct outcome and delivery action of the Ipswich Economic Development Strategy:

• Prioritise sporting partnerships to attract high quality events to the city

• Partner with national and international brands to identify promotional opportunities for the city

Under Council’s Event Sponsorship Policy, it is required that all event sponsorships including Category 2 sponsorships above $15,000 (approved by Council resolutions) and Category 1 under $15,000 (approved under delegation by the General Manager Community, Cultural and Economic Development), all ticket allocations and confirmed economic impact studies are recorded in a quarterly report to the Economic and Cultural Development Committee.

Event Sponsorship Category 2 over $15,000 (excl. GST) endorsed by Council during the
1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 period:

• Ipswich Show Society $35,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Ipswich Show

• Ipswich Turf Club $20,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Ipswich Cup

• Willowbank Raceway Incorporated $35,000 (excl. GST) in cash support for the 2025 Gulf Western Oil Winternationals

Ticket allocations made during the 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 period:

• 2025 CMC Rocks, 35 tickets for corporate hospitality for advocacy and capacity building purposes

Legal IMPLICATIONS

This report and its recommendations are consistent with the following legislative provisions:

Local Government Act 2009

policy implications

This report is required under the Event Sponsorship Policy.

RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS

No risks have been identified. The report transparently outlines event sponsorships approved within delegation during the three-month reporting period.

Financial/RESOURCE IMPLICATIONS

The outlined financial support will be covered by dedicated event sponsorship funding allocated within the 2024-2025, 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 City Events Budgets.

COMMUNITY and OTHER CONSULTATION

Meetings have been held with representatives from the associated organisations prior to and following the submission of the event sponsorship applications.

Conclusion

Under council’s Event Sponsorship Policy, it is required that all sponsorships including sponsorships under $15,000 excl. GST and all ticket allocations are recorded in a quarterly report to the Economic Development Committee.

This report details all event sponsorships approved within the 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025 reporting period.

HUMAN RIGHTS IMPLICATIONS

HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACTS

RECEIVE AND NOTE REPORT

Recommendations A, B and C state that the report be received, and the contents noted. The decision to receive and note the report does not limit human rights. Therefore, the decision is compatible with human rights.

Carly Gregory

Manager, Marketing and Promotions

I concur with the recommendations contained in this report.

Ben Pole

General Manager (Community, Cultural and Economic Development)

“Together, we proudly enhance the quality of life for our community”

Economic and Cultural Development Committee

Meeting Agenda

22 April

2025

Doc ID No: A11273151

ITEM: 3

SUBJECT: Nicholas Street Precinct - March 2025 Nicholas Street Precinct Project Control Group

AUTHOR: Precinct Governance Manager

DATE: 24 March 2025

Executive Summary

Recommendation/s

That the March 2025 NSP PCG Report be received and the contents noted.

RELATED PARTIES

Savills Australia – Program Management

Ranbury Management Group – Program Management

Colliers – Retail Leasing

Setting up Shop – Tenancy Delivery

Alkot Studio – Retail Design Manager

ifuture Theme

Vibrant and Growing

Purpose of Report/Background

The NSP PCG supports the Economic and Cultural Development Committee in providing governance and strategic direction for the planning, development, delivery and ongoing management of the NSP. The NSP PCG generally reports monthly to the Economic and Cultural Development Committee on the planning, development, delivery and operations of the NSP assets.

The NSP PCG met on 19 March 2025 and the draft NSP PCG 19 March 2025 meeting minutes are contained in Attachment 1.

The table below identifies the status of retail and commercial leasing as at 24 March 2025. Colliers are the appointed retail leasing agents and are speaking with many prospective tenants and we continue to seek active interest through existing partnerships for leasing the remaining commercial space. The changes to the table below relate to the lease for Tenancy 2B02 in Tulmur Walk, which is now being prepared.

Deal Status	As at 24 March 2025	Change from 25 February 2025
Lease Documents Being Prepared	1	1
Lease Documents Issued for Execution	3	0
Leases Executed by Lessee	22	0
Leases Pending Approval by Lessor (Council)	0	0
Leases Executed by Lessor (Council)	22	0

Within the Venue Building, fit out works within Tenancy T5 and T6 (corner Brisbane Street and Ellenborough Street) have now concluded and Anytime Fitness opened in late March, with the grand opening event to occur on 12 April 2025. The opening of this tenancy provides a significantly improved and activated shopfront presenting to Brisbane and Ellenborough Streets. The opening of Anytime Fitness will see activity increase in the precinct during the early morning and late afternoon/evening peak trading periods. As gym-goers search for closer car parks and healthy dining options, it is likely that activity will extend into the Top of Town and the wider Ipswich Central areas.

In Tulmur Walk, fit out works within Tenancy 2B16 for The Greenhouse Therapies have progressed well, with most of the internal works now completed. The Greenhouse Therapies will open in early April.

The NSP marketing and activation focus during February was on providing experiential marketing content to target audiences both within and outside of the Ipswich region. For example, content highlighted ways to host children’s birthday parties in the precinct (leveraging the various entertainment and food offerings); and provided a guide to an evening spent at the precinct (aspiring to increase night-time visitations).

NSP Precinct Perks was also launched on 25 February 2025, which is a campaign where subscribers enter a draw to win gift vouchers from participating businesses. The majority of NSP tenants have chosen to take part in the campaign, as well as the Civic Centre. The campaign is progressing well, and is scheduled to end on 28 April 2025, when 9 eligible subscribers will be presented with gift vouchers. It is expected the NSP subscription base will be significantly bolstered by the campaign.

During the month of February 2025, the Precinct recorded over 158,000 visitations, including 29,765 visitations to the Venue building. The Venue visitations have fallen compared with January, likely attributable to the commencement of school term, though overall Precinct visitation was up by more than 50,000 compared to February 2024.

Legal IMPLICATIONS

This report and its recommendations are consistent with the following legislative provisions:

Local Government Act 2009

Local Government Regulation 2012

policy implications

Nil

RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS

A copy of the consolidated Nicholas Street Precinct project risk register is included as confidential Attachment 2.

Challenges continue with retail leasing including but not limited to COVID-19 impacts, the pace of the retail market rebound, the securing of anchor and other tenants and the attractiveness of the offer from the lessor (Council) in the current market conditions. These conditions include the increased cost of goods, consumer caution in relation to spend and the ability for the retail and hospitality industry to absorb this over time.

Achieving legally binding agreements for lease/sub-leases with prospective precinct tenants remains a critical outcome given completion of the refurbishment works.

Financial/RESOURCE IMPLICATIONS

The table below summarises the current capital project budget and forecast to finish. The final project cost is forecasted to be within budget.

	Project	Current Budget	Committed Contracts and Variations	Forecast Contracts and Variations	Forecast Final Cost
1	Civic Project	$188,020,704	$183,746,497	$142,195	$183,888,692
2	Commonwealth Hotel	$16,652,052	$16,524,627	$127,424	$16,652,052
3	Retail Project	$34,407,196	$35,238,189	$3,301,020	$38,539,209
4	Venue Project	$71,935,639	$64,331,194	$7,604,445	$71,935,639
	TOTAL	$311,015,591	$299,840,507	$11,175,084	$311,015,591

The civic and retail cashflow for recent months is captured in the table below:

Month	Monthly Expenditure	Project Cumulative Total
November 2024	Retail: $28,330 Civic: $35,225 Commonwealth Hotel: $16,187 Venue: $1,533,714	$1,613,457
December 2024	Retail: $612,870 Civic: -$23,934 Commonwealth Hotel: $1,682 Venue: $2,521,183	$3,111,801
January 2025	Retail: $91,163 Civic: $105 Commonwealth Hotel: $7,829 Venue: $82,103	$181,200
February 2025	Retail: $59,992 Civic: $1,946 Commonwealth Hotel: -$6,339 Venue: $501,387	$556,986

The retail precinct’s short-term commercial success remains dependent on identifying, attracting, and securing a commercially viable tenancy mix through executed leases. Medium to longer term success will require a comprehensive and ongoing activation and management strategy to support tenants and deliver a revitalised and activated precinct.

COMMUNITY and OTHER CONSULTATION

The contents of this report did not require any community consultation.

Conclusion

Recent leasing executions and approvals reinforce market confidence in the Nicholas Street Precinct retail product and continue to strengthen the leasing campaign to secure tenants for the NSP. The completion of works within the Venue and Commonwealth Hotel buildings and opening of anchor tenants positively reinforces Ipswich Central’s future and Council’s commitment to its success. With the completion of refurbishment works and progressive opening of additional tenancies in the precinct, the focus and attention of the NSP project team will increasingly shift to continued leasing and property management activities.

HUMAN RIGHTS IMPLICATIONS

HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACTS

RECEIVE AND NOTE REPORT

The Recommendation states that the report be received and the contents noted. The decision to receive and note the report does not limit human rights. Therefore, the decision is compatible with human rights.

Attachments and Confidential Background Papers

1.	Draft NSP Project Control Group Meeting Minutes - 19 March 2025 ⇩

	CONFIDENTIAL
2.	NSP Project Risk Register as at 24 March 2025

Mitchell Grant

Precinct Governance Manager

I concur with the recommendations contained in this report.

James Hepburn

Precinct Director

I concur with the recommendations contained in this report.

Sonia Cooper

Chief Executive Officer

“Together, we proudly enhance the quality of life for our community”