MARIBYRNONG Council has given itself a standing ovation after reviewing the first year of its $400,000 plan to be a ‘festival city’.
A review put to a council meeting last week stated the “initiative has been successful beyond the most optimistic expectations”.
The conclusion is a dramatic turnaround from where the council was when the festival policy was launched. A bitter dispute between it and the Footscray Asian Business Association led to the council trying to take over organising and managing the East Meets Lunar New Year Festival.
The council then proceeded to drop the ball and the 2011 festival didn’t go ahead.
“A revamped East Meets West Lunar New Year Festival was a major success this year, following the collaboration between council and the Footscray Asian Business Association as festival organisers,” the report stated.
The tick of approval comes with a request for more money in the 2012-13 council budget to cover lost paid-parking revenue during street
closures. The report also calls for more staff and funds to increase the number of “core festivals”.
The council’s assessment is based on feedback from festival organisers, people involved in risk management, informal feedback from festival-goers and an increasing number of requests from festivals to perform in Maribyrnong.
The report credits the strategy and the festival co-ordinator directly with attracting four new festivals.
Footscray Traders Association president Grant Miles, whose Rickshaw Run was part of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival in the past two years, said he couldn’t fathom the reason for the “backslapping and self-congratulating”.
“As I’m sure the author of the report is aware, the bulk of the festivals mentioned were already an integral part of the Maribyrnong community before any council budget funds were diverted from the ‘arts’ column and re-badged with the name ‘festival city’.
“Quite obviously, if successes are to be so blatantly backdated, then so should the failures, such as the avoidable loss of the 2011 Lunar
Festival.
“The report fails to even mention any of
the hard work put in by the organisers of the various festivals, and seems to be oblivious to the idea that council’s role is to find ways to nurture and support community festivals and events, rather than take the kudos for the elbow grease of
others.”
The council’s community well-being general manager, Arden Joseph, said the festival calendar was “fundamentally a community festival calendar and council acknowledges the commitment of communities, traders and volunteers”.
“Council also acknowledges their work through ongoing funding, both cash and in-kind support, as well as on promotional, marketing and sponsoring collateral.”
