DEPUTY mayor Bobby Bourke declared the Forever Young tagline was “forever gone” as Bathurst Regional Council voted last week to seek two new logo design and tagline choices from consultants Destination Marketing Store.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
It’s hoped the new options will be available for discussion at the December meeting of council, but ratepayers will pay handsomely for the privilege.
General manager David Sherley told councillors his staff had already been in contact with the consultants to ask if the short turn-around was feasible and to ask about the cost.
The consultants will aim to provide new options in time for a working party prior to the December 13 meeting, but council will pay $10,000 to $15,000 for the new work.
That outlay is on top of the $40,000 spent so far on a logo and tagline that have been widely condemned as lacking originality and having no association with Bathurst.
Cr Bourke – who, with Cr Jess Jennings, tabled a notice of motion calling for council to seek new options – said councillors needed to take control of the final decision on a logo and tagline.
“The brand Forever Young is forever gone – let’s get on with it, get some options and make a decision,” he said.
Cr Ian North and Cr Monica Morse had earlier moved a notice of motion that council defer the branding strategy pending a report on future options but failed to win support from their colleagues.
Cr Morse was particularly critical of the branding document presented to councillors.
“I can’t get away from the fact it is a sub-standard document where they have said things twice, made spelling mistakes and in even in one area said ‘Bathurst is almost 200 years old’,” she said.
Earlier, Fran White – a member of the Tourism Reference Group that signed off on the new logo and tagline – launched a passionate defence of them from the public gallery.
Ms White said strident criticism of the logo and tagline showed a lack of understanding of their purpose.
“They are not to represent all of Bathurst, that would be impossible in just a couple of words, but to create anticipation and quickly engage the viewer,” she said.
Ms White said it was important to note that the logo and tagline were just a small part of council’s overall branding strategy and that they had been created not for the people of Bathurst but for prospective visitors from outside the region.
Read more