Part 1 - Shire of Ashburton

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Shire of Ashburton Tourism Strategy January 2011 Ideally, it would be beneficial for the current lessee to invest and undertake improvement works to the Park immediately however with only 3 years left to run on the lease there is little incentive for them to undertake this type of investment. The Shire can either commence negotiations with the current lessee to secure commitments for a future capital investment program in the Park exchange for extension(s) to the current lease, or wait until the lease expires and tender the site to attract a lessee with a strong commitment to investment in improvements and to manage the site professionally. Recommendation 36: the Shire to retain freehold ownership of the Onslow Ocean View caravan park and at the end of the current lease tender the leasehold business with a view to securing a professional caravan park operator prepared to invest required capital to refurbish and install new facilities. Revise lease documents to shift responsibility from Shire (landlord) to lessee for maintenance of buildings and facilities. Capital investment in buildings by lessee a condition of lease, annual rent to be negotiated based upon capital investment commitment. Sun Chalets, Onslow The short stay commercial accommodation operation is also well located on the Onslow town’s beachfront in the centre of town and adjacent to the Onslow Visitor Information Centre. The property includes 9 self contained units and 7 motel units rated 3 stars. There is approximately 3 years left to run on the current lease. A review of Shire financial reports reveals the lessee pays some $35,000 per annum to the Shire in rent. Budgeted outgoings include an Aerial view of Sun Chalets allocation towards insurance (estimated to be around $5,000), and a capital expenditure budget allocation of $250,000 in 2009/10 although actual expenditure for the 10 months to 30 th April 2010 is around $129,000. As per the current lease the Shire is responsible for maintenance of the buildings and internal fittings and to date the Shire has undertaken the renovation of 5 bathrooms with more expenditure expected. The location of the property is considered excellent, and there is additional vacant space to easily accommodate additional units. A major investment of capital is required to continue refurbishing existing buildings and to establish additional capacity. The excellent beachfront location lends itself to a major commercial accommodation redevelopment. In terms of return on investment the current lease arrangement is highly unfavourable to the Shire, specifically the requirement for the Shire to invest in substantial capital works. As with the Onslow Ocean View Caravan Park the Shire has the options of either commencing negotiations with the current lessee to secure commitments for future capital investment and expansion of facilities on the site in exchange for an extension to or creation of a new lease more in favour of the Shire, or wait until the current lease expires then tender the site to attract a lessee developer with an attractive commercial accommodation investment strategy for the property. A third option would be to tender the freehold for the property preferably at the end of the current lease period so as to offer the full range of potential development opportunities and to maximise the selling price. As Onslow is about to undergo some major project investment an assessment of these options should be made as the current lease is approaching its end date in around 3 years time rather than make a recommendation at this stage. 53
Shire of Ashburton Tourism Strategy January 20111 Recommendation 37: the Shire to continue to fulfil its lease responsibiliti ies for the Onslow Sun Chalets property by maintaining and refurbishing buildings as required. At the end of the current lease period assess development options in context of the local economic climate and opportunities. Options would include extending current lease (however renegotiate to lessen landlord capital works obligations); tender the leasehold business with a view to securing a professional accommodation operator prepared to invest required capital to refurbish and install new facilities; seek expressions of interest for freehold purchase. Tom Price Tourist Park, Tom Price Aerial view of Tom Price Tourist Park A large capacity caravan park located some 3 kilometres from the Tom Price town centre. The facilties appear well maintained and lessee has displayed a commitment to investing in new units when required. The Park offers caravan and camping sites, a range of cabins, one and two bedroom chalets, and two bedroom villas. There is approximately 14 months left to run on the current leasee with a further option to renew of an additional 21 years subject to various conditions including agreed building works by the lessee. A review of Shire financial reports reveals the lessee pays some $ 40,000 per annum to the Shire in rent. Budgetedd outgoings include an allocation towards insurance of $3,800, generating a net surplus to the Shire of around $36,200 per annum which is considered a good result for the Shire. The lessee appears to be a competent and professional caravan park operator and has indicatedd interest in being the proponent/potential lessee if a short term visitor facility was to be established at the T junction of Paraburdoo and Mine Site Roads at the entry to the Tom Price townsite. This facility could include visitor informationn bay, small number of short term overnight caravan bays (hence the initial link to the current caravan park operator in town), vehicle washdown and even petrol facility. The current Tom Price Caravan Park lessee appears to be a good partner for the Shire if this type of facility was to be established. Recommendation 38: subject to the Tom Price Caravan Park lessee fulfilling required building works before the end of the current lease (Nov 2011) it would appear the lessee will exercise its option to extend the current lease by another 21 years. As the current operator appears to be delivering a good standard of service and fulfilling its lease obligations then the Shire should continue to maintain its existing good relationship with the lessee. The current lease appears favourable to both Shire and lessee and it is recommended that this status quo remain. Opportunity to develop a proposed visitor facility at the T junction (Paraburdoo and Mine Site Roads) should be discussed between the Shire and Lessee to investigate project feasibility. 7.4 Activities The visitor based experiences within the Shire of Ashburton region largely revolve around four key activities. As per the ANW Tourism Development Priorities report; Firstly there are the rugged, ancient and untouched natural experiences of the Karijini and Millstream Chichester National Parks. Secondly, activities such as diving, snorkeling, boating and fishing are found in places such as Onslow and the Mackerel Islands. Thirdly, there are attractions and activities that are based on the local mining industries, Pilbara Iron Mine Tours in Tom Price and Salt Mine Tours in Onslow. Finally, there are historical experiences that are centred around pastoral heritage and places such as Old Onslow. 54
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The Shire of Ashburton Tourism Dest
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Shire of Ashburton Tourism Strategy
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Shire of Ashburton Tourism Strategy
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CONTENTS 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Rep
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Part 1 - Shire of Ashburton

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