The events sector has been hit hard by COVID-19 and this has included a host of events presented by Central Coast Council.

To keep the events’ magic alive Council has looked to develop online versions of some of its most popular events including Live Well, Harvest Festival and ChromeFest.

Council Unit Manager Community Partnerships, Glenn Cannard said local providers had been engaged to capture event highlights and create engaging video packages.

“Whilst COVID-19 restrictions are easing, it will be some time before our usual events schedule can resume and we have made the difficult decision to cancel all physical events to the end of October 2020 – this unfortunately encompasses our much-loved ChromeFest event,” Mr Cannard said.

“We’ve been thinking outside the box to create new ways to bring some of our events safely into the living rooms of our community and those that would usually travel to the Coast to experience our events.

“The Live Well Festival was the first to go online – with local health and well-being providers giving us insight into how we can make healthier choices and positive changes in our lives.

“Harvest Festival is currently rolling out online and gives us a glimpse behind the farm gate through four engaging video packages – Taste of Harvest, Paddock to Plate, Embrace the Adventure and Farmers’ Story.

“We’re currently working out how to showcase some of the best features of ChromeFest 2020 online – so that we can experience the ‘show and shine’ and ‘twist and shake’ fun of this great event from our homes.

“Also stay tuned for updates on how we plan to deliver our events from November onwards in smaller innovative format programs that meet current restrictions.”

Mayor Lisa Matthews said the Coast’s reputation as an events destination would continue to grow.

“With restrictions easing, our stunning region is open for business and we’re thrilled to welcome back visitors to the Central Coast,” Mayor Matthews said.

“Some of our flagship events may not be going ahead in their traditional formats this year however it’s exciting that we can partake in some of the fun from the safety of our homes.

“We can also assure that our major events will return bigger and better than ever as soon as possible.”

Parliamentary Secretary for the Central Coast and Member for Terrigal, Adam Crouch said the NSW Government was providing funding from the Bushfire Community Resilience and Economic Recovery Program.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted lives and livelihoods, but bushfire recovery and support remains front-of-mind for the NSW Government,” Mr Crouch said.

“Council has received $25,000 to continue the Harvest Festival event in 2020 so that local businesses can be better promoted online and in a way that encourages our Central Coast community to buy local.”

Online events are featured on Council’s new Coast Connect YouTube Channel – centralcoast.nsw.gov.au/youtube – and Harvest Festival and ChromeFest will be available on the Facebook pages for the respective events.

For a full list of COVID-19 event cancellations and information on venue closures and re-openings please visit centralcoast.nsw.gov.au/COVID-19.