CORONAVIRUS restrictions may have eased in regional Victoria compared to Melbourne, but Geelong and the Bellarine\u2019s tourism industries say the state government’s \u201cone size fits all\u201d approach has not gone far enough to restore confidence for both operators and customers.<\/p>\n
After seven days of lockdown, restrictions outside of Melbourne loosened on Friday last week to no longer require face masks outside, no restrictions on movement and the opening of all retail.<\/p>\n
Restaurants, pubs, cafes and wineries were allowed to open for seated dine-in service with a maximum cap of 50 people across the entire venue.<\/p>\n
The Sharp Group director Lyndsay Sharp said the state government had offered no explanation for the \u201crigid\u201d 50-patron limit – which also applies to outdoor recreation and sport, outdoor tourism venues, and creative studios – and it was hitting hard at her venues Jack Rabbit Vineyard, Leura Park Estate, Flying Brick Cider Co, Curlewis Golf Club and The Range @ Curlewis, which had opened mostly to keep casual staff employed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d say medium to large venues statewide are bewildered by that because it doesn\u2019t make sense. It should be, at a bare minimum, one person per 4 sqm.<\/p>\n
\u201cHospitality needs a chance for survival and they\u2019re making it very difficult. It\u2019s not sustainable for our business to stay open at a 50-patron capacity, we can\u2019t afford to reinstate all our great casuals, it\u2019s very difficult to meet overheads because they don\u2019t go away.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said her weekly overheads across the board were $220,000, and the state government’s rollout of nearly $500 million in business support during this lockdown was \u201cenough to keep the lights on but not much else\u201d.<\/p>\n
Tourism Greater Geelong and the Bellarine (TGGB) executive director Brett Ince said he was \u201cextremely disappointed\u201d that Victoria had entered a fourth lockdown.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know seven days doesn\u2019t mean just seven days because it takes a long time for confidence to come back, and to get back to where we were in the COVID Normal restrictions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we\u2019re hoping for is that when Melbourne takes this next step, regional Victoria\u2019s restrictions are loosened once again as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said Victoria\u2019s third lockdown in February had hit hard, but businesses had generated a level of confidence and momentum towards recovery since then.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile the seven days (May 28-June 3) wasn\u2019t during an absolute peak period, it’s meant that consumer confidence has been rocked once again.\u201d<\/p>\n
Geelong Chamber of Commerce chief executive officer Ben Flynn said it was “heartbreaking\u201d the usual boom for businesses over the Queen\u2019s Birthday long weekend would not happen.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe headline is that regional Victoria has opened up, but there\u2019s limits on how many patrons can be in hospitality venues, caravan parks don\u2019t even know if they can open – there\u2019s still a trail of restrictions that make it really hard for businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Tuesday this week, Acting Premier James Merlino said both Melbourne and regional Victoria were \u201con track\u201d to have COVID-19 restrictions eased further at the end of this week.<\/p>\n
Ms Sharp is hoping for considerable good news.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think collectively, as an industry, everyone in hospitality, tourism, experiential accommodation and accommodation have their fingers crossed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Mr Ince said TGGB was \u201cabsolutely aligned\u201d with his sector\u2019s peak body, the Victorian Tourism Industry Council, on the need for a roadmap to re-open both Victoria\u2019s regional and metropolitan visitor economies as soon as possible.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
CORONAVIRUS restrictions may have eased in regional Victoria compared to Melbourne, but Geelong and the Bellarine\u2019s tourism industries say the state government’s \u201cone size fits all\u201d approach has not gone far enough to restore confidence for both operators and customers. After seven days of lockdown, restrictions outside of Melbourne loosened on Friday last week to […]<\/p>\n