Bright No. 1 for Treechangers
Arguably Australia's most picturesque setting ... Beautiful Bright
Bright named as Victoria’s best ‘tree-change’ town
This will come as ‘bad news’ for supporters of the anti-progress ‘Save Bright’ group and anyone else who’d like to “keep Bright as it is” and halt all population growth and development, but last night on Channel 9’s A Current Affair, Bright was named as Victoria’s best town for those looking to relocate from the capital cities, i.e. for ‘Tree-changers’.
The assessment was made by demographer Bernard Salt based on a range of criteria such as the setting, the scenery, facilities, infrastructure, services and just the overall attractiveness, lifestyle and ‘feel‘ of the town. Bright came out head & shoulders over ALL other Victorian destinations, not just for a holiday but also for permanent living. The TV report, and especially the footage, was the best P.R. we could possibly have had.
Now all we need is for the Alpine council to finally acknowledge Bright’s massive appeal and do something about it by (a) getting serious about further improvements to the CBD, and (b) promoting Bright as the centrepiece of the region.
Attracting tree-changers is one of the best ways of shoring up our economy, as it stimulates local industries. And, as their incomes usually come from sources outside the region, the boost they provide to our economy is ongoing.
Somehow though, I doubt our council really wants to push Bright’s credentials to the rest of the world and it’ll be left up to the private sector to do whatever they can to get the message out there, which is:
Wally says: I'm taking y'all to VCAT, Woolies. Go on, git! Git out of 'my town'.
Contact: alpineopinion@gmail.com
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What a fantastic coverage for our area. Pitty ACA did not give the towns shown more air time – but then the story on Patrick Swayzee is more important right!
I presume the phone lines at Dickens Real Estate will be running hot.
Perhaps the Council funded Information Centre may make some money Ray?
Yes, they overdid the Swayze interview alright, Andrew. I got the gist of it in the first few minutes, the rest was pure kitsch. Great shame about his illness though.
Yes, it was good PR for Dickens as well as Bright but I’m not sure how that would convert to more business for the
BrightAlpine VIC. Still too hard to find.The story was originally in The Australian on January 3:
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/business/story/0,,24867387-25658,00.html
They ran a nice picture of kangaroos on a hill overlooking the town.
Strictly speaking, the ‘Australian’ article is incorrect in stating that Bright is 200km from Melbourne (it’s more like 300km) & by rights, using the criteria set by the author, should not be included.
That’s just nit-picking & I’m delighted that Bright gets a guernsey!
Salt is that offensive Demographer who has decided his marketing skills are enjoyed by so called babyboomers.Using this and all the other delineated age groups he has continued to create more problems than he could answer with his demographic values.Why dont you let the town attract to it, naturally,because the contrived brings with it falsehoods,and thus only changes in land acquisition and value.Express community please,not commercialism as the front.Go for a long charity sports event where every member of the community wants to chip in.So attractive to outsiders it becomes a scramble. Take a look at Dorrigo N.S.W. and the champions of the town that extend back a long time. Bright must have similar,you haven’t convinced them have you!? Have a BIKE ride with a ten foot pole joist, down hill,with a voice recorder on every pushbike where the bicyclist has to balance ride and think up a poem on a subject of discretion on the day!? Lead by example, my friend.
I’m not trying to “lead” anything, Philip, I’m just observing. Anyway, for your information, Bright is already a very commercial town, in fact commercialism is its sole reason to exist. The community tends to be less stable than other towns that are less tourist oriented and people tend to come and go a fair bit. It’s forever changing, which makes it more vibrant & lively than other sleepy little towns. Sorry, I’ve never heard of Dorrigo NSW and I’m not sure why we’d need to “take a look” at what they do. Thanks for your suggestions though.
Philip does raise some important issues – mainly the power of the media. However, you are right Ray, the town is already commercial, otherwise we wouldn’t enjoy the tourist numbers we attract. Without the tourists, we wouldn’t have the number of resturants, shops, activities available that we (as locals) also enjoy.
The media can help promote towns and also damage them – depends on the author. I was quite impressed with the article and story on ACA, even if all the facts were not correct. At the end of the day – Bright received a huge plug and from all reports, the phones continue to ring. More people into town – more businesses stay open – more businesses will continue to open.
Philip – not sure were you are from – but each morning I look out my windows of our house and think we are the luckiest people alive – this really is the best town to live in.
It’s great PR, Andrew, but there’s also a danger that this ‘one person assessment’ by Salt will give us a false sense of achievement. Already I see the Alpine council has put out a press release which almost claims credit for it and seems to suggest we can just sit back and let it happen.
While I agree with Salt’s assessment of Bright the fact is we still have to strive to get that message out to the market. Here’s the press release, it’s very sycophantic and self-congratulating. Also, it’s simply not true that “the phones have run hot” since the ACA report:
http://www.alpineshire.vic.gov.au/page/page.asp?page_Id=1262