‘Incredible frustration’: agent weighs cost of safety concerns on staff, future in town

RE/MAX Nambour Director Tristan Brown fronts the media in the Town Square on Friday with Maroochydore MP Fiona Simpson.

by Cameron Outridge

Business owners and staff around Nambour’s Town Square are expressing their deep frustration over the continued lack of substantial acknowledgement of safety concerns plaguing the area.  Despite ongoing issues related to unruly behaviour, violence, and drug and alcohol-induced incidents, RE/MAX Nambour Principal Tristan Brown said there has been a lack of effective response from authorities. 

Mr Brown said, with no signs of improvement or a clear plan of action from the State Government or Council, the relatively small CBD business community was left feeling unheard and concerned for the safety of their staff and customers. 

Mr Brown said business owners around the Town Square on the corner of Lowe and Short Streets were “incredibly frustrated” that there was a general lack of substantial acceptance of their continued safety concerns.

“There’s this lack of acknowledgement that there is even a genuine problem,” he said. “The responses from the relevant people who have a responsibility to the community are responses focused on justification, or on debating that there even is an issue.

“And then they try to hide behind figures that we all know are not representative of what’s happening on the ground, in and around the square. From our viewpoint, the safety concerns may not have gotten worse, but it certainly hasn’t improved. There’s no sign of improvement. And what’s frustrating is there’s no clear indication that Council or the State Government have any sense of an effective plan of attack. There is a real lack of leadership and guidance when it comes to addressing the issue. 

“And this is a problem that we need to get in front of. It’s too late to wait for more businesses to close and then address it. It’s completely avoidable.”

Mr Brown said concerns for his staff and customers were at a level where his office had to consider moving to another town.

“Do I want to move? No, I don’t. We like the presence of where we are. We shouldn’t have to move. But there have been conversations in our office, with staff saying: ‘Could you imagine how good it would be if this office was in Woombye, Palmwoods or Yandina? Can you imagine just how lovely it would be to walk down the street every day and go to a cafe and not have to deal with any of this sort of unpredictable, unruly and antisocial behaviour?’

“We literally wouldn’t know ourselves,” he said. “What a lovely feeling it would be to operate in a safe environment. There’s 20 people within my doors who earn a living, who then put their money back into Nambour, whether it’s local coffee shops or groceries etc.

“We don’t want have to be in a position where we have to choose to take such a drastic action. That doesn’t help Nambour.”

Mr Brown said his office and other businesses in the vicinity are becoming accustomed to the threat of unpredictable drug- and alcohol-induced behaviour, from yelling and arguing to full-on fights, assaults and stabbings. One business owner recently broke up a fight which erupted outside her window where a man was stomping on another man’s head.

“Unfortunately there’s no point continually getting upset by it, so now we just try to ignore it,” said Mr Brown. “But we do sometimes think what a lovely feeling it would be to park your car and walk one block to the office and not have to worry about dodging potentially threatening situations and having to listen to curse words and drunken or drug-induced behaviour.”

Mr Brown said he felt for local police. “We acknowledge that the police are doing the best they can. They just don’t have the resources available.” 

Mr Skelton’s office was contacted for comment but had not responded by deadline.

Cr Law outlines response to Town Square concerns

Division 10 Councillor David Law said he was well aware of the safety concerns of RE/MAX Nambour director Tristan Brown and some other business owners around the Town Square. 

He said leadership was coming from three angles and provided the following outline:

 1. Dealing with immediate improvements to that specific area that can help with safety (eg clearing vegetation to ensure good CCTV coverage). 

2. Activating foot traffic in the area and in the wider Nambour town centre (eg re-activating the weekly Thursday markets with the Chamber of Commerce, supporting the ‘Namba Street Art Walks’ on Saturday mornings, hosting the monthly Forecourt Live event.

3. Helping vulnerable people to lead fulfilling, sustainable lives (eg collaborating with not-for-profits to build affordable rental accommodation in the town centre, supporting the new IFYS youth accommodation service launched last week).

Cr Law said there were  signs of improvement in the Town Square area around Lowe and Short Streets.

“Some key events have chosen the Town Square as their venue in the last couple of months,” he said. 

“On Queensland Day ABC Sunshine Coast hosted a live outside broadcast from that exact spot and ‘I Am Nambour’ launched their promotional video campaign. 

“Finally, through my work in council we continue to offer a number of incentives to encourage new traders to the area; a shop front improvement grant – which has generated a lot of interest – and free permits for on-street trading and dining.”