Our main street areas are set to become more vibrant and lively thanks to MidCoast Council securing an Open Streets program grant from Transport for NSW.
Wingham, Gloucester and Forster have been chosen to host four events scheduled to run between September and December.
Council is excited to announce that under MidCoast Mains, our main streets will come to life and residents, businesses, musicians and creatives will converge in the heart of their town centres.
MidCoast Council’s Manager Economic and Destination Management, Tanya Lipus, said she is excited to see what the funding brings our town centres.
“This is not just a great opportunity to add vibrancy to our main streets, bringing residents, businesses, musicians and other creative artists together, but an important initiative to help stimulate the local economy,” she said.
“A pilot of the Open Streets program in other parts of the state saw an average increase in visitation to town centres of 370% and a doubling of sales turnover for local businesses.”
Minister for Roads, Arts, Music and the Night-Time Economy, Jobs and Tourism John Graham said:
“We’re excited to support these events in Wingham, Gloucester and Forster.
“Too often our main streets are something we drive through, rather than drive to. Our streets are a critical part of our public and social infrastructure. Great streets make great towns and centres and reflect the local community and culture.
“The Open Streets program is about temporarily transforming our main streets into vibrant and welcoming public event spaces.
“The colour and diversity of these 130 events celebrates the unique personality of each town or suburb. This is what our vibrancy agenda is all about, backing locals to create events and entertainment that works for their local community.”
