The people say “no” to plan for $600 market trader levy

The Terrier – Carol Altmann

Last week, The Terrier Facebook page did an unintended, free poll for the W’bool City Council on its plan to whack market stallholders with a new $600 a year fee to set up their trestle tables and tents.

The post exploded.

The Terrier is a one-person operation, so this sort of response to a single post is incredible.

It sends a very clear message and it is one we all hope the WCC hears with ears wide open: we have had enough of the constant asking for more of our hard-earned dollars without one shred of solid evidence or justification.

Despite promises, Mayor Tony Herbert is yet to provide any examples of a permanent city trader who pushed for this levy.

Mr Herbert has also not explained why, after operating successfully for years, the fresh markets are now considered a public health risk that this new fee would help “monitor”.

(Btw, stallholders have to meet food standards, pay insurance and, usually, pay a fee to the market organiser.)

The council has also not explained why local market stall holders should pay $600 a year, yet big outfits like Jurassic Creatures plonked themselves at Lake Pertobe for a month over summer without – I have learned – paying one dollar in permit fees.

It is unfair. It will kill the local market scene and it will not make one iota of difference to the CBD traders struggling to come back from a street upgrade that ran a cool $3 million over budget and still relies on paid parking.

So here you go WCC, the feedback is in and the people have spoken. Let’s see what happens next.



WCC plans to hit market traders with $600 fee

Carol Altmann – The Terrier

Nuts: the W’bool City Council has sparked a near riot with its crazy plan to hit market stall holders with a new $600 a year fee.

The fee is part of a new ‘itinerant traders’ policy that hits the soy candle sellers, fresh bread makers, vegie growers, jam makers, sock knitters and everybody else who makes Warrnambool come alive through the market scene.

Anyone who has ever done a market stall knows it is incredibly hard yakka with an uncertain return, depending on the day. These hard working, early rising, earthy, organic, wonderful folks are not a threat to Warrnambool’s retail scene for god’s sake – they add to it!

They now face paying $600 a year, $350 for six months or a hefty $125 for just 48 hours.

Not only will the new policy, as it stands, hit individual stall holders, the person running the market must pay a $1500 fee.

The council says it is trying to create a level playing field for permanent traders. What a load of cods. These traders aren’t worried about the rhubarb chutney sellers, they want timed free parking in parts of the CBD. If the WCC wants to help permanent traders, it should act immediately on the trader petition signed by almost 3000 people, asking for this very thing.

Honestly, who comes up with these ideas? We could, of course, just wave all visitors straight through to Port Fairy, where the market culture is huge.

WCC also says it is bringing W’bool in line with other councils, but this is not correct. Other councils, like Glenelg and Moyne, have itinerant trader fees, but they don’t apply to market stall holders who are part of a single event on council land, ie. the equivalent of our Lake Pertobe, or the Civic Green.

I have been inundated by market stall holders absolutely stunned by this attempt to whack them on the head.

All of them helped to bring our foreshore alive over the summer and hopefully made a few dollars in the process – good on them – and this is the charming thankyou note from our council.

If you would like to support our market folk, drop Mayor Tony Herbert a line at therbert@warrnambool.vic.gov.au and tell him what you think of this idea, or you can respond to the council survey on its website: http://www.yoursaywarrnambool.com.au/draft-itinerant-tradin…

#newwarrnambool #freshmarkets #marketlife