Event Site/Venue Review
TULIP TIME, NSW
Tulip Time has been held annually in Corbett Gardens in Bowral in the Southern Highlands west of Sydney since 1960. The festival attracts over 50,000 attendees over two weeks, with up to 7,300 visiting the garden on any weekend or public holiday.
Corbett Gardens has issues which are affecting the ability of the event to grow, the quality of the event experience, and resident satisfaction in their use of the park year-round. Because of the need to upgrade Corbett Garden’s infrastructure, a new masterplan for the park was drawn up which addressed the community’s needs. The plan was not able to include adequate space to continue to host Tulip Time in its current format so Council sought to find a suitable alternative venue for Tulip Time.
Council identified nearby Glebe Park as the most suitable venue for the future of Tulip Time and commissioned a masterplan for Glebe Park as the festival’s new venue. However, no impact assessment of moving Tulip Time to Glebe Park was performed prior to the masterplan being developed.
Project Purpose
Tilma Group was engaged by Wingecarribee Shire Council’s Destination Southern Highlands to assess the impacts of moving Tulip Time from Corbett Gardens, Bowral, to a new permanent site, and provide a recommendation on the most suitable site to support the future of Tulip Time.
The review sought to ensure Council could make a fully-informed decision on the future venue of Tulip Time that represents the best return on investment for Council, the lowest impact on the community, and the best opportunity for increasing the benefits the region receives from its flagship event.
Project Overview
Tilma Group assessed eight potential permanent sites for Tulip Time against a list of criteria such as providing an intimate gardenesque feel, having capacity to allow for festival growth, and ease of access.
Tilma Group assessed the impact that hosting Tulip Time in each venue would have on event visitation, the community, local businesses, and the festival.
Outcomes
Based on the assessment undertaken and a recommended shift to a premium boutique event model, Tilma Group recommended that Wingecarribee Shire Council take a three-phase approach to relocating Tulip Time, ensuring the lowest risk and disturbance, highest return on investment, and biggest opportunity for Tulip Time.
Phase One: 2020 – Planning for Festival Success
Undertake a strategic business planning process for the festival, based on the recommended new festival model and venue.
Phase Two: 2021-2025 – The Transition
Tulip Time to remain in Corbett Gardens during a transition phase under the new event model which will focus on increasing yield for the region via increased visitor spend, length of stay and dispersal, rather than growth in attendee numbers.
Phase Three: 2026 & Beyond – Southern Highlands Events Venue
Develop a venue for large events for the region for year-round use by a variety of events; a better investment for Council than investing in developing a site for Tulip Time alone.
Developing a venue for large scale events had been identified in Wingecarribee Regional Economic Development Strategy. Tilma Group recommended site for the events which could be developed in phases, with the first phase being development for use by Tulip Time.
COVID and then the suspension of Council to be replaced by an Interim Administrator has meant that this project has not yet been progressed.
Referee
Lorna Bussell
Tulip Time Officer
Wingecarribee Shire Council
0410 093 059
lorna.bussell@wsc.nsw.gov.au
www.tuliptime.net.au