QAGOMA seek to foster life-long learning with a focus of building cultural understanding, bolstering well-being, and developing community connection. To deliver on these outcomes, QAGOMA are looking to develop the All-Ages Learning Centre (AALC)m a proposed programmatic and spatial extension in the Queensland Art Gallery, to support the continued growth of life-long learning in the Arts and culture. AEC were engaged to evaluate the economic and social benefits investment in the AALC will have on the Queensland community. AEC undertook an economic impact assessment using AEC's in-house Input-Output model to estimate the impact of the initial construction, ongoing operations of the facility and any induced tourism benefits. To estimate the social benefit impact of the proposed AALC, AEC identified key social benefits derived from cultural education and engagement with the Arts. AEC relied on studies conducted across Australia and the UK to support the quantifiable social benefits.1 Economic Analysis of all Ages Learning Centre.

The Lady Bjelke-Petersen Community Hospital (LBPCH) was purchased by a privately owned company in 2022 and was found to require an extensive maintenance program to uphold the operational capability. The new owner proposed to develop an integrated health precinct including a private hospital, residential aged care, new infrastructure for complimentary health services (pathology, radiography, etc.). AEC developed the Business Case for the proposed hospital and aged care facility development, including a comprehensive analysis of service need and health service demand across the region, analysis of the facility operations, a commerciality and financial feasibility assessment, and an economic impact assessment. AEC also reviewed the social benefits of such an investment to understand the broader impacts to the region.

AEC and Plan C worked as in collaboration to produce the Queensland Music Trails Business Case for Queensland Music Festival (QMF). The Queensland Music Trail and annual program of music-related events and activations that create unique journeys across the State. The Queensland Music Trail will combine existing events with new events, activations, and pop-up experiences along the Queensland Music Trail to encourage visitors to ‘linger’ in locations and regions across and surrounding the Trail, enabling increased visitor dispersal and greater lengths of stay throughout the state. Works undertaken by AEC included: Trail corridor identification, informed by socio-economic analysis and stakeholder engagement to understand regions of suitability, capability and need for hosting an event along a trail corridor. A total of seven unique QMT trails were identified using this process. Detailed market and demand assessment of potential attendance profiles, event visitation, ticketing expectations and event participation. Economic analysis including an individual assessments of direct and flow on economic impacts (including output, gross regional, state and domestic product, incomes and salaries paid, and full-time equivalent employment levels) and cost benefit analysis for each event proposed along each trail. Analysis highlights that the Trails will deliver $295 million in Gross State Product, 3,000 Jobs and a Net Present Value of 1.5 by 2025. Financial analysis to understand the Trails commercial viability, which included analysis of event facilitation costs, overhead and operational costs, income and revenue strategies, expected cashflow and the catalytic seed funding required for each trail. This business case was used in successful grant funding applications worth $6.8 million, enabling them to roll out a pilot activation program that created jobs, increased bed nights and induced visitor spend, and boosted the cultural tourism activity of regional communities in South-West, South-East and Far North Queensland.

The local government area of Bundaberg is situated within the Wide Bay-Burnett region of Queensland. Bundaberg is currently benefiting from a number of tailwinds including strong visitation numbers, low levels of residential vacancy, a growing population base and significant current/ proposed infrastructure investment. Despite the many positive attributes benefitting the region, there has been an observable lack of investment with respect to the delivery of new short-term stay/ hotel accommodation. In order to assist Bundaberg Regional Council with better understanding the existing barriers to entry for hotel development, they engaged AEC Group. The purpose of the report was to provide a detailed assessment of the hotel market within Bundaberg and identify future demand for hotel accommodation within the region. The assessment considered all aspects of the Bundaberg hotel market, including the broader tourism market within the region, factors influencing the demand and supply of hotels, and relevant case studies of markets in other jurisdictions. Also forming part of the project were a series of presentations to both Councilors and prospective developers/investors, market engagement with local proponents, real estate agents and developers and the preparation of a hotel investment prospectus.

The purpose of the study was to assist Council in understanding residential development feasibility across a range of development scenarios under existing land zoning controls, and to identify, through a capacity assessment, whether Cessnock Council’s existing planning controls can accommodate and meet the forecast housing needs to cater for projected dwelling targets as set out in the Hunter Regional Plan 2041. Cessnock City Council (Council) were undertaking a comprehensive review of their Cessnock Local Environmental Plan 2011 and Cessnock Development Control Plan 2010. As part of this work Council sought to verify whether existing planning controls are suitable to facilitate sufficient dwelling development to meet the forecast dwelling demand over the next 20 years. AEC researched the viability of alternative dwelling types through feasibility testing to confirm alternative dwelling development that could potentially be viable throughout Cessnock LGA. We also investigated the areas that are most appropriate in providing the potential additional housing typologies based on development feasibility testing. AEC then mapped existing land supply to quantify the potential dwelling supply under existing residential development controls. This mapping also considered availability of necessary infrastructure, physical constraints of allotments, and other constraints mapping such as flooding, bushfire risk, etc. We were able to provide Council a forecast of dwelling capacity able to be delivered under existing zoning, as well as mapping that latent future capacity to inform Council’s forward planning.

The proposed extension of the main runway at Ballarat Airport, coupled with the development of adjacent surplus Crown land for industrial development, provided Council with the opportunity to explore options for the future Airport development, ownership, and management arrangements. AEC and our aviation partner, Avistra, undertook a situation and market analysis of the Airport and also provided a broader analysis of the aviation sector. This work identified emerging aviation and aerospace business and broader technology & advanced manufacturing opportunities that had the potential to support a more commercial approach to the management of the Airport in the future. Additionally, a review of the potential governance options for operating the Airport were considered including retaining ownership, establishing a special purpose vehicle, leasing, and divestment. Subsequent financial analysis and recommendations supported Council decision-making on the next steps in determining the future strategic direction for Airport operations.

In its 2019-20 Budget the Queensland Government introduced a range of amendments to the land tax regime, including the introduction of a foreign investor land tax surcharge of 2.0%. The introduction of the 2.0% foreign investor surcharge effectively doubles the land tax payable by a foreign investor. AEC undertook a review and assessment of the economic ramifications of the foreign investor surcharge to provide evidence and context to justify a potential exemption framework from the foreign investor land tax surcharge. The assessment examined a range of potential asset classes to understand the potential increase in costs for foreign investors over an asset life cycle, implications on the feasibility for development of new build and investment in existing assets for foreign investors (and likely ramifications in terms of reduction in investment), and the overall impacts to the broader Queensland economy resulting from this reduction in investment. A potential framework for exemption from the surcharge was then proposed to minimise adverse impacts on the Queensland economy.

Toowoomba Regional Council commissioned AEC to undertake a comprehensive review of its general rating structure and levels to ensure equitable outcomes across and within rating categories. The intent of the review is to recommend adjustments to the rating structure to enhance equity and to ensure the rating structure is reflective of industry best practice whilst still considering local factors and local community impacts. The project involved a series of workshops with Council to discuss the potential amendments to the rating structure, in addition to the likely impacts on different sectors of the community. A comprehensive implementation plan was then developed to help smooth out ratepayer impacts.

AEC was engaged by ALGA to complete a detailed research project into the financial sustainability of local government and the benefits provided by the Financial Assistance Grant Program. The engagement required assessment of the financial sustainability of the 535 local governments within Australia, based on a 5-year history of reported annual financial performance.  AEC also completed economic impact assessment for each local government area of the provision of Financial Assistance Grants, based upon the current entitlements and alternative scenarios should the grants be increased and decreased. The outcomes of the research has informed the policy and advocacy for ALGA and the member local government associations in each jurisdiction.

The City of Wodonga is projected to experience substantial growth in population, the Council is planning for an increased demand in both services and infrastructure. The Wodonga Council Plan 2021-2025 outlines the challenges and the criticality that Council plans, partners and seeks to meet the needs of the growing population and ensure the community has access to sufficient amenities and services. The current and future financial sustainability of the Council is a fundamental basis to enable the Council to provide adequate amenities and services, for both the current and future generations that will consume and pay for amenities and services. AEC was engaged by the City of Wodonga to provide a financial sustainability review. AEC considered and assessed the alignment between the adopted Financial Plan and the suite of planning documents that Council has adopted, with particular emphasis upon whether the Financial Plan has adequately included the impact of adopted plans on future operating and capital works funding requirements to meet the population and urban growth and to create a livable and prosperous city. In consultation with the Council, a sustainable vision for the City of Wodonga was developed along with financial sustainability principles and recommendations for Council to adhere to for future decision making.

Wagga Wagga City Council engaged AEC Group Pty Ltd (AEC), to develop a Business Case for Stage 3 of the Riverside Development, with proposed facilities including an Entertainment/ Convention Centre and Cultural Centre. The proposed facilities address critical gaps in the market by providing a centrally located, larger-scale entertainment and business facility, and a truly unique Indigenous cultural centre, supporting cultural tourism and growth in the national and international visitor market. This project not only caters to the regional population's needs but also enhances business tourism, positioning the region as a premier destination for high-profile entertainers and various events. AEC successfully managed this project in accordance with Infrastructure Australia Project Assessment Framework and NSW Treasury's Business Case Guidelines, spanning five stages.

Shoalhaven City Council has in recent years faced challenges in the preparation of a sustainable Long Term Financial Plan that meets the Office of the Local Government performance indicators. Over the past five years, the Council has experienced consecutive disasters – most notably COVID pandemic, bushfires and floodings which has impacted significantly only the normal business operations, including asset maintenance and asset renewal programs, as well as impacting upon the availability of cash. The development of the adopted Long Term Financial Plan (LTFP) in 2022 was undertaken with a lower level of confidence than otherwise would be sought and an acknowledgement that a review of the Council’s financial sustainability was necessary before the Council could consider and adopt in confidence a revised Long Term Financial Plan that would deliver a sustainable future. The following is an extract from the adopted LTFP highlighting uncertainty in budget setting – Council continues to operate in the context of uncertainty with recent historical budgets being adopted with some flexibility and requiring a dynamic budget to ensure that the levels of service provided to the community remain unchanged with opportunities for expansion to be considered as and when the uncertainty decreases. The primary objective of the Financial Sustainability Review therefore was to assess the long-term sustainability of the Council’s current financial settings and direction, identify key drivers and determinants of future sustainability and facilitate the development of an improved sustainable long-term financial plan with strategies to avert potential issues from emerging in the future.