Activating outdoor trade for small business – a guide for Queensland councils

Engage with your local business community to find out which businesses are interested in outdoor trade, and what they would like to do. Is there opportunity for businesses to cooperate with each other and with council to activate outdoor trade?

Working with businesses and areas that are already keen to trade outdoors is a great way to get started.

Learn more about engaging with businesses.

You may like to consider these factors:

• your local community—and how they would like to use different places in your town
• local weather, climate, and environmental features
• existing business communities and precincts
• unused or underutilised spaces
• existing infrastructure, transport, amenities (e.g. public lighting, seating, bikeways/scooters, public wi-fi)
• existing levels of patronage/foot traffic—and the potential to improve this
• synergies with other activities (e.g. entertainment, events, festivals)
• unique arts, cultural or First Nations elements that could be highlighted
• related council placemaking activities or strategies/initiatives (e.g. related to encouraging walking or cycling).

• You have the power to regulate outdoor trading activities such as footpath dining, street markets and commercial activities in parks and other areas (except state-controlled roads unless a section 66 (TORUM) agreement is in place).
• Under the Local Government Act 2009 and the City of Brisbane Act 2010, you have the power to control local roads in your area, to close a road to traffic either permanently or temporarily, and to establish a special entertainment precinct for the purpose of regulating noise from music being played at licensed premises.
• If you enter into a section 66 (TORUM) agreement with TMR (and amend the local laws accordingly), you will be able to regulate, through local laws, footpath dining and roadside vending on the state-controlled roads nominated in the section 66 (TORUM) agreement. This gives you the ability to apply consistent rules to businesses in your local government (or lesser agreed) area, whether they are on state or local roads. It also means applicants only need to contact council when seeking approvals in their local area. For more information contact your local roads office.
• Under the Liquor Act 1992, you can apply for a delegation which will allow designated officers to approve a liquor licence change of boundary for outdoor trade subject to certain restrictions. This gives you more control to make decisions in line with your local economic development plans, and can reduce approval times for businesses by up to 2 weeks. For more information, contact the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation on 1300 072 322 or email OLGRlicensing@justice.qld.gov.au.

A good first step is to work with local businesses and residents to pinpoint 1 or more places in your town where outdoor trade is appropriate and businesses are keen.

Then, focusing on that location, you could consider these steps:

1. Evaluate whether you have regulation in place that inhibits outdoor trade unnecessarily, for example, local laws, planning scheme provisions, or policies and procedures. You should also consider your administration practices, as this is often a source of additional compliance that may not be adding value. Talking to local businesses will help you find out about their compliance pain points.
2. Think about how you could reduce this compliance burden, for example, by adopting or updating relevant policies and activation plans and simplifying practices, digitising administration and automating activities. The Queensland Government is available to assist with this—contact your regional Department of State Development and Infrastructure (DSDI) office to get started.
3. Most Queensland councils are members of the Small Business Friendly program. You may like to discuss options for tackling identified barriers with your peers in the Placemaking Community of Practice—which provides a space for councils to share learnings about what works and discuss challenges.

• You may wish to review the application and licensing fees that a business looking to set up outdoor trade would need to pay your council. This includes considering the total fees payable, which can have a big impact on a small business. Could fees be reduced so that they do not create any disincentives to local businesses?
• Review your internal processes and consider if you can make them more efficient.

For any areas proposed within the boundary of a state-controlled road, early and ongoing engagement with the local office of TMR is required to identify OTAA suitability based on road safety factors, including but not limited to the speed environment and road geometry.

Consultation with TMR will provide an opportunity to assess possible safety risks to road users and patrons. It also allows any required mitigation measures (for example, barriers, bollards and signage) to be incorporated into the development requirements as obligations.

Make sure your OTAA protects our cultural heritage. Any designation of or development on an OTAA is subject to consideration of the State interest for cultural heritage under the State Planning Policy. If there is to be development on a State or local heritage place, approval is required under the Planning Act 2016 or the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. Local heritage places are protected by you as the council. Places on the Queensland Heritage Register are protected by the Queensland Government.

• Find out more about development approvals and exemptions for State heritage places.
• Access the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Heritage Database and Register.

You should also consider your powers and obligations in relation to environmental nuisance and noise standards under the Environmental Protection Act 1994 (EP Act). The EP Act provides you with the flexibility to manage environmental nuisance in your local area and to make noise standards for your area.

Complaints in relation to environmental nuisance and noise from outdoor trade would generally be referred to the relevant local government to address and the OTAA plan should include how any complaints regarding environmental nuisance and noise will be managed.

In some cases, it may be necessary to refer a noise complaint to another agency—see the noise factsheet (PDF, 221KB) developed by the Queensland Government to assist local councils, residents and businesses to understand how noise is intended to be managed for our communities.

You must comply with the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 as it applies to public footpaths and walkways. The Australian Human Rights Commission provides more information on obligations and on how to document decision-making where accessibility requirements cannot be met.

Read more about access and inclusion.

Identify stakeholders who could be affected by OTAAs or outdoor trading initiatives, including businesses directly affected and their clients, customers, and suppliers. The following stakeholders could be considered:

• your local chamber of commerce—search the Business Chamber Queensland website for contact details
• local tourism and business associations
• businesses
• community groups
• relevant Queensland Government agencies.

Methods may include:

• visiting and talking with local businesses
• online surveys
• workshops with businesses and the community
• exhibition of potential OTAAs for comment.

Establish tailored engagement and communication strategies ensuring:

• culturally appropriate and respectful communication for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities
• accessibility for people with disability
• appropriate approaches for engaging with people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (including engagement with local community leaders).

Consider how privacy of stakeholders' personal and business data will be maintained.

You should capture stakeholder feedback about opportunities as well as concerns or impediments and share any learnings transparently.

Think about these questions:

• Are businesses interested in developing new outdoor trade opportunities or expanding existing areas?
• Does the community want new or expanded outdoor trade?
• Are there road safety risks and mitigation measures that need to be agreed with the relevant road authority?
• Will other factors such as the need for a future footpath or roadworks in the area impact on potential outdoor trading sites?
• How can an outdoor trade area or initiative ensure fairness of access to opportunity to trade?
• Will there be any amenity impacts on the surrounding area, for example, noise and lighting? Are there any other potential impacts on adjacent businesses and residents?
• Are local businesses accessible and inclusive?

It may be helpful to capture details about how local businesses work to help determine what kind of outdoor trade activation activity may work best. Consider things like:

• opening hours
• peak trading times (during the day and year)
• customer base—number of customers, use of reservations and walk-ins
• foot traffic
• main delivery times
• access needs for customers, staff, deliveries, waste removal
• any upcoming or special events.

Keep businesses and the community informed as you work to develop an OTAA or outdoor trading initiative. Consider these tips:

• set out the purpose, goals, strategy and constraints of the initiative clearly
• inform businesses of timeframes and upcoming changes in advance so they can plan ahead
• provide regular updates to local businesses through newsletters, emails and face-to-face liaison
• create a key messages document covering why the initiative is being undertaken, what will be happening and in what timeframe, to ensure consistency of communication
• provide a feedback mechanism to allow stakeholders to provide feedback on their ideas or concerns, identify learnings and take any reasonable action.

Consider how you will promote your activation area or initiative to both businesses and the public. Some key ideas to consider include:

• signage to show the public that the initiative is happening
• special events to bring visitors to the area
• support and encouragement of pop-up businesses
• promotion of accessibility features broadens participation to a larger customer base
• accessible signage and communication, including in Easy English (and translated materials in languages relevant to the local community)
• identifying social media and other online marketing and communication opportunities.

You may be able to collaborate with local business associations and empower small businesses to work with each other and council to develop opportunities, such as joint events to attract customers to an outdoor trade area.

Safety for customers, staff and community members is a priority in any business location, and you must take reasonable measures to prevent the risk of injury to those using the area.

• Consult with TMR about site selection and design to allow assessment and mitigation of road safety risks for road users and patrons if located on or adjacent to a state-controlled road.
• Review information on activities and structures in the road corridor.
• Ensure all building works and built structures comply with the required building laws, codes and standards.
• Ensure outdoor activation areas are set up to allow emergency services to quickly access the area.
• Ensure evacuation routes from the outdoor activation area are clear, including routes from adjacent buildings.
• Consider how your OTAA may be affected by a severe storm, flood or fire. Review the Queensland Fire Department website to find out more.

• Providing shade in public places integrates sun protection with improved functionality, use and enjoyment of community spaces. Learn more about sun safety in outdoor settings.
• Review your obligations for managing environmental nuisance such as offensive odour, dust and light, and specific local government powers and obligations in relation to noise regulation and noise standards.
• Learn about waste, recycling and litter, including Queensland Government waste reduction initiatives.
• Ensure there will be adequate toilet facilities to meet any increased demand.

• It is important to ensure that all pedestrians can safely access streets and footpaths. Review information on pedestrian access and standards.
• You must also consider the design and navigation to ensure disability-inclusive pathways, for example, for the vision impaired. Review information on access to premises from the Australian Human Rights Commission and learn more about building access standards for people with a disability to help you keep the pathways safe and free for all users.
• If creating any temporary infrastructure to support outdoor trade, ensure accessibility and universal design is built-in, including
  • sufficient seating
  • wide footpaths
  • flush entryways
  • slip resistant surfaces
  • space for wheelchair-users to rest and turn
  • low tables and counters.
  
  A universal design approach helps local businesses to attract a broader customer base.

• Consider if your outdoor space could create any access barriers and how these could be addressed. Examples of barriers could include
  • bright lights and loud sounds
  • lack of or inaccessible pathways
  • tables and chairs against a building, which may create obstacles for the vision impaired
  • lack of accessibility features on outdoor signage, art or exhibits
  • lack of adjacent accessible parking or accessible restrooms
  • covered benches that do not allow for a wheelchair or other mobility device.

• Review fact sheets on creating inclusive and accessible venues and events.
• Read the guide to creating accessible events (DOC, 155KB) from the Australian Human Rights Commission.
• Consider creating your own access key, to provide accurate and convenient information about accessing your venue or event for all people, regardless of ability. Learn more about access keys from Access Ability Australia.
• Use the resources in the Accessible tourism toolkit, which has been designed to support Queensland's tourism industry to become more accessible and inclusive to all visitors.

You must ensure, when designing and implementing your strategy to activate outdoor trade, that you give proper consideration to human rights and that your decisions do not unreasonably limit the human rights of individuals. This is an obligation under the Human Rights Act 2019 (HR Act).

For example, you may be considering appropriate locations for an outdoor trade area. While one location has many attractive features, you are aware that an outdoor trade area will result in increased traffic, noise or other disturbances for local residents. This may engage those residents' human rights by interfering with their peaceful enjoyment of their property, which is protected under section 24 of the HR Act. You will need to consider whether this impact on the human rights of local residents is justified before deciding whether to locate the outdoor trade area in that location. This includes:

• considering any reasonable alternatives
• balancing the benefits of situating the outdoor trade area in that location against the interference with residents' human rights.

Learn more about complying with your obligations under the HR Act.