A fresh pair of eyes | It's time to get serious about the battle for new businesses

Councils are becoming more active in helping the local economy grow and this has led to increased competition between councils for events, tourism, business attraction and retention.

The responsibility for business and economic development is achieved in three ways - helping local firms grow, retaining larger firms, and attracting more businesses to the area.

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Councils cannot offer the same level of incentives as countries or even states, which has forced them to become more creative.

Land and rates have traditionally been the main inducements, but clever councils are now adding elements such as discounts in energy and water, skills training, and fast-tracking planning approvals as part of individually tailored solutions.

Bathurst Regional Council has a small team of people dedicated to economic development.

It is led by a manager whose commitment and enthusiasm I have long admired. He and the team do a great job with limited authority and resources.

Unfortunately, some other councils in NSW do an even better job at business and economic development.

A number of councils have elevated the role of business and economic development to the more senior position of director and given this person authority and resources to grow, retain and attract the right businesses to the area.

For example, Dubbo Regional Council and Mid-Western Regional Council used the council mergers of 2016 to completely restructure their respective organisations.

This resulted in both councils adding a position at the most senior level, responsible for business and economic development, as well as events, marketing, branding and publicity.

Some other examples where councils have created a dedicated director of business and economic development include Albury, Bourke, Forbes, Griffith, Ku-ring-gai, Liverpool and Tamworth.

In fact, the last time I checked, 26 councils (out of 128) across NSW have already created a position specifically responsible for economic development at the most senior management level of their structure.

The serious negative impacts of coronavirus have presented Bathurst Regional Council with a once-in-a-generation opportunity to also restructure its organisation.

It is heartening to see council recently implementing measures to stimulate our local economy. I commend the allocation of $50,000 for council to work with an outside agency to bring new business opportunities to Bathurst, as reported by the Western Advocate on July 1, 2020.

However, a new director of business and economic development could help this region recover even faster from COVID-19 and assist council to chart a course for future prosperity for all the community.

Still not convinced? Why not try answering the following questions.

When was the last time council attracted a major employer to Bathurst?

When did you last hear of council helping a local small firm grow into a medium-sized business?

When was the last time council campaigned to keep a major employer from leaving Bathurst?

If the answer to these questions are "don't know", "can't remember" or "don't think it ever happened", then you have just provided the perfect case for Bathurst needing a director of business and economic development.

We need this change. Not just for ourselves, but for our children and our children's children.