General News
8 April, 2026
Visitor centre to shut
THE Tully Visitor Information and Heritage Centre (VIC) is to close in a bid to save Cassowary Coast ratepayers $300,000.
Council has revealed a new Cassowary Coast Tourism (CCT) funding agreement – a leaner, performance-driven deal, signalling a shift in traditional visitor services.
An internal report on the three-year ‘funding and service agreement’ was endorsed at council’s March meeting, with a mandate for “smarter” operations and a significant reduction in ratepayer-funded subsidies.
It will also include the relocation of the Mission Beach Visitor Information Centre from North Mission Beach to the centre of town, in the high-traffic village green precinct.
And for the first time, the new agreement – projected to save council more than $300,000 over the three-year term – means CCT will have to earn “performance payments” by hitting strict key performance indicators (KPIs).
Under the previous agreement, council allocated $340,000 per annum for three years, totalling $1,020,000.
But additional costs for repairs, maintenance and depreciation on buildings brought the actual expenditure closer to $413,000 a year or $1.24-million in that period.
The funding decrease will see $340,000 base funding provided in the first year only, then for year two, $309,000 base funding plus a $10,000 performance payment and $226,600 base funding plus a much bigger $55,000 performance payment in year three.
“The agreement establishes a transition pathway that focuses on improved visitor servicing and a reduced long-term reliance on council funding,” said the report.
CCT executive officer Patrick Bluett told The Observer he was satisfied with the new agreement and funding arrangements, saying council had been open and transparent about its budget restraints in the lead up to the new agreement.
“We’ve always had KPIs, but they just haven’t been, you know, financially indexed, I guess,” Mr Bluett said.
“It’s always been our core KPIs to increase visitation, increase the overall visitor economy, which we’ve been very successful in doing over the last six years,” he said.
“Council were very open with us and did say that all budgets were under review.
“There is pressure down, pressure on everyone’s budgets in the current economic climate.
“So, we were just happy that council were open and transparent and we had a very robust conversation over a series of meetings with our board members and council.”
The Tully VIC’s closure is all about numbers – or at least, the lack of numbers in recent years.
Council data indicates the facility has suffered not only less visitor numbers – but also the lack of a formal lease.
“The reality is, the number of people or visitors, in particularly utilising information centres is definitely on the decline,” Mr Bluett said.
But rather than completely disappearing from the Tully landscape on June 30, arrangements are already being made for an alternative visitor information service in the town until at least year’s end – in the form of a ‘mobile’ information centre.
“It’s a caravan that’s been converted so that will be fully-kitted out and used as an information centre for the balance of the year – and that will be based in Tully,” Mr Bluett said.
“We’re just trying to find the location, whether we base it in the car park at the existing information centre, or whether we have it in the Banyan Park by the Golden Gumboot.
“So, locals can still book their train tickets, coach tickets, we can still service the mill tours, so the impact will be minimal for the balance of the year.”
Arrangements have also been made for the Mission Beach VIC’s move to the CBD.
“We’ve entered into a commercial lease agreement for a retail premise on Porter Promenade. We think that will increase exposure and will help local business. It will help local tour operators throughout the region.”
Read More: Tully