Welcome to Westbury -Prison blight or tourist bloom? What local businesses think …

Dec 3

Westbury presents itself to tourists as a classic Georgian village, surrounded by country roads lined with hawthorn hedges and bursting with old English charm.

Set in the midst of prime farming country, with a Town Common on its western fringe and a Village Green at its heart, the streets, houses, inns, churches and businesses of Westbury display their historic credentials to visitors from around the world.

But will a prison to be built 2 kilometres away from its centre deter the tourists?

Gazette reporter Sharon Webb spoke to six local businesses doing their best to welcome tourists to their town.

Amanda Taylor, Westbury Gingerbread Cottages, Westbury

A RANGE of people stay in our cottages: mostly tourists but also visiting workers and families.

I hope I’m not being naive but I’d like to think we can overcome the ‘prison’ label if we focus on Westbury’s history and the community feel of the town.

I’d like to think having a prison here will benefit our business and the rest of the town.

But I can understand where people who oppose it are coming from. The fear of the unknown is always hard.

We have security concerns; we have two children. But I think a maximum security prison would be security-tight.

Martin Hamilton, The Devil’s Own Icecreamery, Westbury

WE SUBMITTED a construction application to the Meander Valley Council for our icecreamery in William St two days before the prison site was announced.

If we’d known about the prison, we would have looked at another location.

We still have a plan to open our shop but in the long term we will probably have to relocate.

I’ve lived in prison towns. I’ve seen what it does to young people and businesses.

Look at business safety measures in Risdon Vale: roller doors locked up behind barriers. That’s not what we want to be.

A lot of effort has been put into this historic, quaint town. Tourism plays a massive role in the life of Westbury.

Some people have called it the most English town in Australia.

I’m concerned the prison will impact tourism. It may have a far longer reach than people might think.

If the tourist trail link of Westbury dies, it will affect tourism businesses in Christmas Hills, Ashgrove Cheese Farm at Elizabeth Town, the Cherry Shed in Latrobe.

From my experience in tourism and hospitality I know tourists won’t come to a prison town because of the stigma.

And realistically, prisoner families travelling to the prison on buses won’t stop in the village centre. Why would they, when they’ve had a coffee and muffin in the prison with their family member?

The Devil’s Own Icecreamery is striving to be a family-friendly business. That doesn’t fit with boarding up the windows and locking doors. In Westbury some people don’t even lock their cars.

ple don’t even lock their cars. A prison will sever that community bond – that old world charm and love and trust. That’s something no amount of government funding will fix.

Robert Hill, Pearn’s Steam World, Westbury

THERE MAY well be a benefit from the prison as more people call in to Pearn’s Steam World.

Other businesses, such as service stations and cafés, may also benefit.

I believe most tourists won’t know about the prison.

The negative publicity and Ashley Detention Centre doesn’t detract from Deloraine, which is a beautiful town. And the negative publicity about the opiate industry hasn’t affected tourist numbers in Westbury.

Tourists will just glide past the prison or be brought off the main highway by tourism routes

Christie McLeod, Hazelbrae Hazelnuts, Hagley

WE HAVE been working hard for six years to build a business that ticks all the boxes government wanted by extracting more value at the farm gate through premium value-adding and agri-tourism.

And then they go and plonk a maximum security prison here and suggest that’s going to give us more customers!

We’ve just completed our next five-year plan based on the local area building its capacity in tourism and attracting visitors for overnight stays. With the announcement of the prison in Westbury, I’m not sure if growing the farm gate value is the best way forward for us

If others in the tourism space feel the same, it could be devastating for the community.

tourism to boost their sales in summer in order to stay open in winter. Without this boost they may become unviable and we will lose services, not gain them.

Even the prison consultants admitted Westbury will not benefit from new families living in the town, or Westbury residents working at the prison.

Had the government come to the community and said, ‘Hey, we think this would work for us, how can we make it work for you?’ maybe there could have been a conversation.

But no, all we’ve been given is spin, mistruths and secrecy, and every effort has been made to keep us feeling isolated and fearful. Not even our councillors – our representatives – can talk to us.

Eve Robson, Once Upon a Time Collectables, Westbury

WE’VE LIVED in Westbury and run our business here for 18 months.

But we definitely wouldn’t have come if we’d known a prison would be located here. We’re originally from Sydney and chose Westbury for our business after many holidays in Tasmania because of its history and because it’s a beautiful place to be in.

We have had the support of the Westbury community from the time we opened.

We don’t advertise but people have come to Once Upon a Time Collectables from all over the north of the state through word-of-mouth.

For us it’s been an idyllic lifestyle – and the prison announcement has turned people’s lives upside down. No-one saw it coming. They are all so passionate about this village.

have been built have changed. A high rate of unemployment, a greater crime rate and lower property prices than in other areas of the state

If Westbury has a prison, I think it won’t do well. I strongly believe tourism will suffer because its image will be damaged. No town wants a prison but a prison can be absorbed in a city or a larger town more easily than it can be in a village of just over 2,000 people.

Hayley Brazendale, Green Door Café, Westbury

A PRISON in Westbury will not be a boost for tourism. It’s really not a good thing for us.

I can’t tell what the effect on tourism will be but I do believe property prices will drop and that’s not ideal.

We’re a boutique-style café restaurant. We prepare all our meals in-house and in 18 months we’ve done wonderful things for Westbury by attracting 1,000 customers a week.

People are attracted to the Green Door by word-of mouth and Facebook recommendations. Around 80 per cent of our clientele are tourists. We rely heavily on them

Westbury is a picturesque, historic village. We have plans for growth over the next five years but having a prison thrown into the mix is not ideal.

Local businessesWestbury Prison

April Underhill