Business and Employment Development Committee

Meeting Date:     Wednesday, 17 February, 2021

Location:            Council Chambers / Microsoft Teams

Time:                   4.00pm

Addendum Agenda

Reports

BE21.3........ Dine & Discover NSW.................................................................................... 1

BE21.4........ Performance of the Shoalhaven Economy - June 2020................................ 7

BE21.5........ Shoalhaven Export Hub............................................................................... 12

BE21.6........ Employment Land Development by Council - status report........................ 14

BE21.7........ NSW Employment Lands Development Monitor......................................... 16

BE21.8........ Boost for Maritime-Related Industry Delivered at Woollamia...................... 19                             

Addendum Agenda - Business and Employment Development Committee – Wednesday 17 February 2021 Page 0

BE21.3       Dine & Discover NSW

HPERM Ref:       D21/57008

Department:       Economic Development

Approver:           Robert Domm, Director - City Futures

Reason for Report

To provide the Business and Employment Development Committee with an overview of how invited Small Businesses in the Shoalhaven can participate in the Dine & Discover NSW scheme.

Recommendation (Item to be determined under delegated authority)

That the Committee receive the report on the Dine & Discover NSW scheme for Small Businesses within the Shoalhaven for information.

Options

1.    That the recommendation be approved as written.

2.    That the Business and Employment Development Committee put forward an alternative recommendation.

Background

The NSW Government is launching Dine & Discover NSW to encourage the community to support dining, arts and tourism businesses and stimulate spending in the economy. The program will be rolled out across the state in March, with Small Businesses encouraged to register online and participate in the scheme. Every NSW resident aged 18 and over will be eligible for four $25 Dine & Discover NSW vouchers worth $100 in total.

Two Dine & Discover NSW vouchers can be used for eating in at restaurants, cafes, bars, pubs and clubs, and two vouchers can be used for entertainment and recreation, including cultural institutions, live music, and arts venues.

Eligible Small Businesses:

§ cafés and restaurants (not takeaways)

§ pubs, taverns, wineries, bars and clubs

§ scenic and sightseeing transport

§ cinemas

§ museums, galleries and historic sites

§ zoos, botanic gardens, wildlife parks and nature reserves

§ performing arts operations, theatres and entertainment centres

§ amusement, theme and water parks

§ recreational activities such as go-karting, indoor climbing, mini-golf, billiards, bowling or ice-rinks

§ outdoor adventures

§ travel agencies and tours

Community Engagement

The Business Concierge South, Service NSW and Shoalhaven Council’s Economic Development Office will be sending information out through social media channels and door knocking businesses. An email blast to Shoalhaven businesses with registered ABN & ANSIC code will also be sent advising Small Businesses how to register.

Proudly Shoalhaven and Shoalhaven City Council have launched the project on Facebook and will follow up with an additional news item on how residents can apply for Dine & Discover Vouchers. The Shoalhaven currently has 40 businesses registered and will promote the scheme throughout February and March.

Service NSW has created a Communications Toolkit for the Dine & Discover NSW Scheme.

Addendum Agenda - Business and Employment Development Committee – Wednesday 17 February 2021 Page 0

BE21.4       Performance of the Shoalhaven Economy - June 2020

HPERM Ref:       D21/57199

Department:       Economic Development

Approver:           Robert Domm, Director - City Futures

Reason for Report

To update the Committee on recent economic trends.

Recommendation (Item to be determined under delegated authority)

That the report on the performance of the Shoalhaven Economy – June 2020, be received for information.

Options

1.    The recommendation be accepted as written.

2.    An alternative recommendation be proposed.

Background

There are several releases of data from the ABS and various Government agencies that have been released over the last year; however, the compilation and analysis of the data at this extra ordinary time has meant that the data releases have been delayed.

Population

In the December quarter 2020 the Estimated Residential Population of Shoalhaven would have approached 107,000. This figure is derived by extrapolating the most recent ABS ERP series forward from June 2019.

Labour Market

With regard to employment within the Shoalhaven the following table shows the latest statistics:

	Population	% change	Employment	% change	Unemployment	% change
Jun-20	106335	12%	38260	11%	3264	10%
Jun-10	95154	11%	34510	25%	2971	-24%
Jun-00	85465	30%	27607	21%	3906	52%
Jun-90	65785		22808		2565

The latest unemployment rate for Shoalhaven is 7.86% (June 2020) which would be close to “full” employment in a regional area like Shoalhaven. Of concern would be that the majority of the unemployed are “youth” (aged below 25).

Traditionally there would also be underemployment in the employed labour force owing to factors such as casualisation and lifestyle choices. However, since the COVID disruption to the labour market there appears to be a willingness by employers in the strong industry sectors to be offering full time working positions.

This therefore appears to be having a structural change to this regional labour market and those in the workforce that could traditionally only obtain casual or part-time work have been able to secure full time employment.

Industry is generally reporting difficulties in recruiting staff, especially those with skills.

The local trends are consistent with those on the national scene, but for an area that traditionally has had unemployment rates at least 50% above the state and national averages, the current situation is quite positive.

CAPEX Indicator

The current major Capital Projects by Government during the past year are:

·        Princes Highway – Bomaderry to Berry

·        Shoalhaven River Bridge Design/Construction

·        Shoalhaven Medical Precinct planning including Carpark construction

Impending projects (0-5 years) include:

·        Shoalhaven Hospital upgrade

·        South Coast Rail upgrade – Toolijooa passing loop

·        Princes Highway – Jervis Bay Rd intersection upgrade

·        Princes Highway – JB Rd to Sussex Inlet Rd – design & construction

·        Princes Highway – Milton Ulladulla bypass – design

·        Princes Highway – Lake Burrill to Batemans Bay design

The level of employment that is within these major projects is quite high, currently around 250 FTEs, and this will be decreasing the unemployment levels. The “Skills Legacy Programs” being run in conjunction with major state and federal project are also addressing the issue of youth unemployment as well as within other local disadvantaged groups.

Economic Indicators

Since 2013 Council has been monitoring the Gross Regional Product (GRP) for the Shoalhaven LGA. This is calculated by REMPLAN using the expenditure method gathered through the National Accounts and ATO data.

GRP is the total value of final goods and services produced in the Shoalhaven region over the period of one year. As can be seen from the table, this includes exports but subtracts imports.

GRP Expenditure Method	$M
Household Consumption	$5,422.939
Government Consumption	$1,600.638
Private Gross Fixed Capital Expenditure	$1,640.212
Public Gross Fixed Capital Expenditure	$428.476
Gross Regional Expenses	$9,092.265
plus Regional Exports	$3,150.572
minus Domestic Imports	-$5,238.673
minus Overseas Imports	-$852.650
Gross Regional Product	$6,040.0m
Per Capita GRP ($'000)	$61.732
Per Worker GRP ($'000)	$172.066

Of interest is that the GRP per worker and GRP per capita are actually moving towards the NSW average as shown in the graphs below:

This demonstrates that the Shoalhaven economy is moving ahead in the industry sectors that have above average productivity, export income and employment such as Public Administration & Safety (incl Defence), Construction, Manufacturing, Finance & Insurance Services, and Accommodation & Food Services.

Over time the GRP will move closer to the NSW average and Shoalhaven is trending quite positively:

	Shoalhaven GRP	Index / worker
January 2013	$3.738b	92.2
January 2014	$4.056b	100.0
January 2015	$4.193b	103.4
January 2016	$4.439b	109.4
December 2017	$5.750b	114.0
June 2019	$6.040b	119.7
June 2020	$6.152b	122.1

The sustainability of our industry sectors is reflected in these figures and other factors such as the agricultural outputs from this area despite being drought affected, but our reliance on the irrigation from the REMS scheme, our fishing and aquaculture sectors and the timber harvesting and processing sectors maintain the overall production.

The relative size of regional economies can be determined by comparing GRP and this is shown below:

Port Macquarie LGA	$5.060b
Mid Coast LGA	$4.769b
Port Stephens LGA	$5.384b
Muswellbrook LGA	$4,081b
Newcastle LGA	$18.220b
Lake Macquarie LGA	$11.099b
Blue Mountains LGA	$3.267b
Wollongong LGA	$14.758b
Shellharbour LGA	$2.978b
Kiama LGA	$0.903b
Shoalhaven LGA	$6.152b
Inland
Dubbo LGA	$3.636b
Albury LGA	$3.967b

Policy Implications

The trends exhibited by the Shoalhaven economy are quite positive despite the impacts of COVID and the natural disasters, and much of this can be attributed to the pipeline of government infrastructure projects for which Council has played a major lobbying role. The continuance of this leadership role is essential, or the Shoalhaven may not sustain this growth and fall back into an era when unemployment was too high.

Addendum Agenda - Business and Employment Development Committee – Wednesday 17 February 2021 Page 0

BE21.5       Shoalhaven Export Hub

HPERM Ref:       D21/57231

Department:       Economic Development

Approver:           Robert Domm, Director - City Futures

Reason for Report

To inform the Committee of a project being undertaken by Council’s Economic Development Office to encourage local business to develop new export markets.

Recommendation (Item to be determined under delegated authority)

That the report on the Shoalhaven Export Hub project be received for information.

Options

1.    Adopt the recommendation as written.

2.    Pose a new recommendation for consideration by the Committee.

Background

The Shoalhaven Export Hub was launched in November 2020, after the Shoalhaven City Council received grant funding through the Australian Government’s Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) Export Hubs Initiative. The initiative will help Australian SMEs to grow, export and increase local and regional jobs.

Council, through its Economic Development Office, is working at the strategic and operational level to grow the economy and encourage expansion and diversification across all sectors. The Shoalhaven Export Hub sits within the Economic Development Office.

The Shoalhaven Export Hub is a collaborative business-to-business network that helps small and medium size businesses harness opportunities in global markets. The Shoalhaven Export Hub will work with businesses to build their skills and know-how to harness global opportunities leading to economic growth including global reach through local infrastructure and job creation across the Shoalhaven by developing globally competitive SMEs. Seminars, workshops and networking activities to develop skills and contacts will be held for members.

The aim of the Shoalhaven Export Hub is to develop companies for export or put them on the export journey by:

§ Assisting firms in determining their export readiness

§ Assisting member firms in developing export strategies focused on current or future global opportunities that reflect local strengths.

§ Enhance member skills and management capability through training and seminars.

§ Increase information and resource sharing between participating businesses.

§ Help to address barriers to participation by member firms in global supply chains.

§ Develop an overarching Shoalhaven export strategy that aligns with growth industry sectors

§ Providing market intelligence about export opportunities

Companies participating in the Shoalhaven Export Hub include:

§ Air Affairs Australia

§ Cherub Rubs

§ Essence Group

§ NowChem

§ PhycoHealth

§ Resilience Logistic Solutions

§ Southern Highlands Brewing

§ Stormtech

§ The Quilting Patch

§ Ulladulla Fishermen’s Co-op

One workshop has been conducted in February where participants worked through Austrade’s online International Readiness Indicator. A second session will occur in early March on Government incentives and assistance for Australian exporters.

As part of the funding agreement with the Australian Government, Council has employed an Export Hub Facilitator, Milton Bazley, for the 2-year duration of the project. He has more than 30 years’ experience in export sales and trading including Queensland bulk raw sugar export sales; Australian and foreign traded branded and unbranded rice export sales; branded Australian almonds and pistachios as well as foreign trade pistachios, cashews and walnuts sales to Australian supermarkets, wholesalers and manufacturers.

Shoalhaven businesses interested in discovering if export is right for them, in developing an export plan or growing their established export business are encouraged to join. Expressions of interest in joining the Shoalhaven Export Hub are welcome.

Addendum Agenda - Business and Employment Development Committee – Wednesday 17 February 2021 Page 0

BE21.6       Employment Land Development by Council - status report

HPERM Ref:       D21/57232

Department:       Economic Development

Approver:           Robert Domm, Director - City Futures

Reason for Report

To bring the Committee up to date with Council’s endeavours to supply employment land.

Recommendation (Item to be determined under delegated authority)

That report on the Status of Council’s Employment Land projects be received for information.

Options

1.    The recommendation be adopted, as printed

2.    An alternate recommendation be devised, for consideration

Background

Council, through its Economic Development Office, has three areas zoned Industrial that it has currently under development and another at Ulladulla that it is hoping to bring to market in a few years. An overview of each of the developments is presented below.

Flinders Industrial Estate, South Nowra

Commenced in 1978, this estate has had over 140 industrial lots created in 9 stages and has resulted in over 250 businesses being established and around 2,500 employment positions being created.

Two stages are currently under development. Stage 10 has around 11 new lots to be created and Stage 11 will yield another 4 lots.

Once a Construction Certificate is issued, tenders for Stage 10 are expected to be released in March/April 2021 for a construction timeframe of up to 18 months. This Stage has received financial assistance amounting to $3m from Restart NSW under the Growing Local Economies fund.

Interest is strong for this 7.4ha release and over half of the land has buyers identified for immediate development.

Stage 11 will be around 4.5 ha and 4 larger lots will be created of which 2 industries have sought to purchase a lot.

Albatross Aviation Technology Park, Yerriyong

This industrial estate is targeting the Defence Support industries and has a number of local and international corporations operating from the estate. First developed in 1997, this estate has received a number for NSW government grants to provide utility augmentation to cover the 4km that the AATP is away from the existing reticulated services.

Planning is advanced on Stage 5 of the AATP to release up to 9 lots, most with taxiway access for which there is interest in 3 of the lots. In conjunction with these works will be an offline firefighting storage and dedicated mains to connect to storage facilities that is required to meet DoD requirements for contractors.

It is expected that construction will extend through into early 2022 when lots will be ready for sale.

Woollamia Industrial Estate, Huskisson

Initially a NSW Lands development commenced in the 1970s, Council bought out the vacant land from the Crown in the 1990s.

Works on Stage 5 were completed in early 2020, the plan registered in September and 6 of the 11 lots have been sold or are proceeding through the conveyancing process. Two new factories are already under construction. Two lots were withheld from sale pending Council relinquishing these as works storage facilities in late 2021.

Stage 5A is currently under construction for 7 lots and should be available for sale in the second half of 2021. There is strong interest in these lots as they are generally smaller than those in Stage 5.

Ulladulla Industrial Land in Camden St

Serviced vacant industrial land in Ulladulla has not been available for the last 20-25 years. The zoned land that is zoned correctly, is unserviced and owned by the Ulladulla Local Land Council.

In the Shoalhaven LEP gazetted in 2016, the former Sewer Treatment Plant in Camden St was rezoned as industrial IN2. Prior to any subdivisional works on the 5ha site being permitted, the site must be remediated of the contaminants. Council has applied for grant funding to undertake the remediation ($2m) and has undertaken to subdivide the land thereafter for 11 new lots to be created at a cost of around $2.5m.

Summary

Council has endeavoured to maintain a stock of employment land for many years. Generally, the demand has been fairly steady over time but since 2016 the tempo has increased, even during COVID. Currently Council has 10 sites ready for sale but many of these are relatively large (>1ha) and larger than the demand requires. The works outlined above should address the market demand.

Privately owned serviced industrial land is available in Bomaderry and South Nowra but not outside of this.

Addendum Agenda - Business and Employment Development Committee – Wednesday 17 February 2021 Page 0

BE21.7       NSW Employment Lands Development Monitor

HPERM Ref:       D21/57529

Department:       Economic Development

Approver:           Robert Domm, Director - City Futures

Reason for Report

To advise the Committee of a NSW Planning tool – Employment Lands Development Monitor.

Recommendation (Item to be determined under delegated authority)

That the report on the Employment Lands Development Monitor, a planning tool by the NSW Government be received for information.

Options

1.    Adopt the recommendation as written

2.    Propose an alternate recommendation for consideration

Background

On 8 February 2021 The NSW Government released a new data set called Employment Lands Development Monitor.

Employment lands are areas zoned for industrial or similar purposes in planning instruments. They are generally lower density employment areas, and provide the essential space for the delivery of:

·    utilities and urban services, including depots, repair trades and service centres,

·    goods including the research, design and manufacturing of goods through to their warehousing, distribution and sale.

The industries and business that locate in these spaces support jobs growth and development, as well as generate significant economic benefits for the community. They are crucial to the functioning of cities and it is critical that there is enough land located in the right places for this to occur.

The Department has been monitoring the status and availability of existing and potential future industrial land and business parks as part of the Employment Lands Development Monitor (ELDM) since 2010. It covers the Sydney, Central Coast, Hunter and Illawarra-Shoalhaven Regions. Reporting for the Hunter and Illawarra-Shoalhaven Region’s commenced in 2017 and 2018 respectively.

Its aim is to provide the data and evidence needed to inform planning decisions that enable job creation and the functioning of a city.

The Employment Lands Development Monitor is an annual snapshot taken at a point in time. As such, the ELDM land audit and associated data is taken as at January 2020 and does not take into account any impact of COVID-19. However, some reporting included in the ELDM such as the industrial, commercial and retail reports provide a more recent outlook across the first half of 2020 including the impact of COVID-19 whilst also acknowledging that the impact on the market is yet to be fully considered at this point in time.

Current Highlights

The Employment Lands Development Monitor (ELDM) is a source of information and a research tool used by developers, investors, Government agencies, utilities and councils in the planning, delivery and servicing of employment lands.

The ELDM contains information on lands zoned for industrial or similar purposes in planning instruments. This information includes the:

·    current stock and availability of employment lands,

·    location of serviced employment lands which are ready for development.

·    location of recently developed employment lands, and

·    location of potential future employment lands.

 The ELDM is an annual snapshot taken at a point in time. The results of the ELDM at January 2020 do not take into account any impact as of COVID-19 on employment lands.

Illawarra-Shoalhaven Highlights

4,435 hectares of total zoned Employment Land

$77.0 million of industrial building was approved in 2019

6 hectares of Employment Lands were 'taken up' by industrial development in 2019

From the database for the Illawarra Shoalhaven Region are the following tables:

This data shows that Shoalhaven has been very active in the employment land development and construction space.

Addendum Agenda - Business and Employment Development Committee – Wednesday 17 February 2021 Page 0

BE21.8       Boost for Maritime-Related Industry Delivered at Woollamia

HPERM Ref:       D21/57239

Department:       Economic Development

Approver:           Robert Domm, Director - City Futures

Reason for Report

To inform the Committee of recent works delivered at the Woollamia Regional Boat Ramp Precinct.

Recommendation (Item to be determined under delegated authority)

That the report on recent works delivered at the Woollamia Regional Boat Ramp Precinct be received for information.

Options

1.    Adopt the resolution, as printed

2.    Propose an alternate resolution for consideration

Background

In the 3 months leading up to the Christmas holiday break a substantial amount of work was undertaken at the Woollamia Regional Boat Ramp that will benefit both recreational and commercial craft operators.

Each of the projects were delivered by the Economic Development Office of the City Futures

Repairs to the Boat Ramp Toe

Concrete planks at the toe of the boat ramp had failed significantly and large hole were evident that could damage boat trailers and make boat retrieval difficult at low tide. This failure was fundamental to many of the other works and with a grant from NSW Boating Now, a precast concrete slab was installed which should provide a long-lasting solution.

The works had to be conducted on the spring low tides in daylight hours. The boat ramp was closed for a short period of about 3 days whilst the work was done by local contractor Jirgens Civil.

Vessel Maintenance Area

The first stage of the Vessel Maintenance area, being a large concrete apron with siltation traps and separators was constructed at the southern area of the precinct. This will form the base of a maintenance compound which will include perimeter fencing, facilities for the contracted operator and a boat retrieval trailer. These latter elements will be constructed in the first half of 2021.

This initial stage was constructed by Jirgens Civil with other local subcontractors – electrical and plumbing.

This project is being funded by Council and the Australian Government under the South Coast Jobs Initiative through the Dept of Infrastructure.

Heavy Duty Loading Platform

There was identified need from the operators of both commercial and recreational vessels within the Jervis Bay area, that a platform to accommodate trucks and cranes to transfer produce, equipment and other items onto and from craft whilst remaining in the water. It also provides a platform for cranes to transfer vessels to and from the water. The stepping of masts can also be undertaken from the platform.

The platform is now in operational and is being utilised by South Coast Mariculture to retrieve mussels from its support vessel that services the mussel leases in Jervis Bay.

This work was undertaken by Jirgens Civil and other local subcontractors. The work was funded jointly by Council and the Restart NSW’s Growing Local Economies fund.

Additional Pontoons

Several new pontoons were placed upstream of the existing pontoons that were placed several years ago. These pontoons are on an even face with the existing pontoons and the loading platform and can be utilised by both recreational craft and commercial craft to providore, embark and disembark patrons and undertake minor works whilst remaining on the water.

Provision of water and electricity are also provided adjacent to all wharf areas. Provision has been made for the connection of sewer pumpout when the town sewer reticulation comes to the area.

These additional pontoons were funded by NSW Boating Now and Council, with the pontoons being place by Jirgens Civil of Nowra.

New Car Park

As part of the upgrade to the precinct a 29 space single carpark was constructed. This facility will allow the car and trailer parking to be utilised more fully and signposting is currently being arranged so that the area can be policed by rangers to provide the segregated use for vehicles.

The area is also used by kayakers, stand up paddleboarders and other paddle craft that do not generate the need for trailer parking.

This carpark was funded by Council and Restart NSW’s Growing Local Economies fund and construction was undertaken by Hisway of Nowra and other local subcontractors.

Project Delivery

All projects were delivered by competitive tendering procurement by Council’s Economic Development Office, with several aspects being rolled up into a single contract.

Tight timeframes were required of the contractors and the pre-Christmas works were generally delivered within a 12-week window. Certain stages, not critical for the operation of all aspects, will be completed over the next six months.

In all almost $3m has been expended by the 3 levels of government to bring about a substantial facelift to the area.

Community Engagement

The various user groups were extensively consulted in the working up of the various aspects of the project. Residents were also engaged.

A management Committee has now been formed to manage the various operational aspects of the water interface and the parking arrangements. The Vessel Maintenance area is to be contracted out to a shipwright.