Yarra River Business Association ushers in a new generation

Tim Bracher, the man who has led the Yarra River Business Association (YRBA) for a remarkable 26 years as its executive officer, has called time on an incredible journey and, in doing so, hands over the reins to the highly regarded Elizabeth Joldeski.

For the many stakeholders invested in our river precinct and its community, it will be hard to imagine life without Tim Bracher having an active presence in the area. Such is the passion and dedication he’s brought to his role for such a long time.

While that passion for activating the precinct, supporting local business and making the Yarra River the best possible tourism destination it can be will forever be unwavering, he said now was the right time to bring in a new generation of thinking.

Enter Elizabeth Joldeski. Appointed to the role last month after beating a competitive field of impressive applicants, it bodes well for the sort of quality and experience we can expect to see in the YRBA’s next chapter.

Southbank News caught up with both the outgoing and incoming executive officers to revisit the past with Tim as a means of looking into what the future has in store under the leadership of Elizabeth. It’s safe to say, the YRBA is in good hands.

Together with the expertise and skillset Elizabeth brings to driving change along the river precinct, how could one ask for a better knowledge bank than that of Tim’s to soak up in preparation for the road ahead?

Meeting along the banks of the Yarra at Riverland beside Federation Wharf, one only has to peer out across the river to Southbank to see how the precinct has evolved over the years. So much of that change has occurred during Tim’s era.

What started as a temporary gig back in the late ‘90s, when the City of Melbourne was looking for someone to kickstart life along the Yarra, has turned into a passion project that 26 years later, he leaves behind as a powerhouse in the city’s tourism sector.

Twenty-five years ago, we had to fight to get Tourism Victoria to include a picture of the river in their promotional campaigns. These days, there is rarely a publication or campaign that does not feature Southbank and the river

“The YRBA was there from the start, helping to turn an idea to turn Southbank from factories into a tourism destination.”

“In the early days we mainly held the hands of the new, small operators. Most of those little operators are now mature and bigger operations. It has been so satisfying to see them grow,” he said.

“Now, we work with the bigger stakeholders to have the voice of business heard and try to get ahead of the big issues.”

Having watched the precinct grow from the city’s industrialised pocket south of the river into what it is today, Tim said the biggest improvement had been “the flow of people throughout the whole precinct”.

At the beginning, people would only visit specific nodes, such as Southgate or the Arts Centre, but he said that Southbank was now Melbourne’s “number one promenading location”.

From Southbank to South Wharf and everything in between, Tim said his most rewarding achievement in leading the association’s efforts had been “helping to turn the river into a 24/7 destination”.

“We now attract a younger demographic to the floating bars and on the self-drive boats. Their parents still go to the restaurants, but you’ll find the younger ones actually on the river,” he said.

While there is no shortage of achievements to celebrate, Tim makes no secret of his “biggest disappointment”, which will undoubtedly continue to present challenges for the likes of Elizabeth and others into the future.

That disappointment, Tim said, was “the almost complete dismissal by government of the recommendation to change the management structure of the river”.

Left: ESR (Southgate) senior marketing manager Fran Hutcheson and Elizabeth Joldeski at Princes Bridge in April. Photo: Hanna Komissarova.

There is a saying that exists along the city stretch of the lower Yarra that goes something like this: if one is to trip from the riverbank, hit their head on a pontoon and land in the water, you would likely have travelled through several layers of bureaucracy.

One example might be that the state government and/or City of Melbourne control the land you’re standing on beside the river; Parks Victoria – the berth; and Melbourne Water – the water itself.

“We still have multiple organisations with fingers in the pie, which makes everything so much harder to achieve,” Tim pointed out, adding that a 2014 multi-department review went close to changing governance of the river, “but the usual territorial interests got in the way and the minister backed away from much-needed change”.

“We’re still suffering from a horribly fragmented river and not much will change without a river management authority,” he said.

But between the precinct’s limitless potential and its pipeline of major projects – namely the council’s Greenline vision for the north bank (a project that knows the river’s bureaucratic maze well) there is plenty of scope for optimism.

Elizabeth comes into the YRBA at a time of major change throughout the precinct, and one which, as Tim said, was now in urgent need of revitalisation due to “little investment” having been made over the past 30 years to keep things up to standard.

“We have gone from being the country’s number one riverfront location to the bottom of the pile,” Tim said.

But with her long experience in dealing with small and medium enterprises through roles in government working with the Minister for Small Business, as well as private consultancy, Elizabeth has the right experience to help our businesses navigate these challenges.

She also plans to run the YRBA alongside her current role as executive officer of Mainstreet Australia – the association dedicated to strip shopping centres throughout the country.

As she told Southbank News, small business is in her DNA ever since her family migrated from the former state of Yugoslavia and established a hugely successful Gertrude St bistro in the ‘70s called Restaurant Yugoslavia.

“I learned from my parents just how hard it is to work in a small business, and they came here so that myself and my brother and sister could get a better education,” she said.

“I’ve been an economic development professional my whole career and worked in state government developing small business policies, programs, and grants – so I’m always looking to see how we can help small businesses flourish and grow.”

“In my role at Main Street Australia, I look from a macro perspective at the policy settings and advocate and lobby for main streets all around Australia, and now I’m getting to put all of those theories, learnings and networks into practice along the Yarra River.”

“When I think of Melbourne, I think this is the most exciting and iconic precinct and I’m just excited to be part of it and look forward to connecting and helping all of the businesses here.”

While uncertainty surrounding the renewal of Southgate and Esso House, as well as the promenade itself, might see the precinct “tread water for a few years” as Tim said, there is no shortage of magic along the Yarra.

“What will not change is the precinct’s status as Melbourne’s tourism and recreation hub. Melburnians love it, and they don’t even need a reason to visit because they know that something will be happening here, even if it’s just people-watching,” Tim said.

As Elizabeth settles into her new role, she thanked Tim for his many years of service and encouraged all businesses in the precinct to reach out. She is keen to connect.

“I’m looking forward to meeting with all of our members and all of our businesses and just getting to know them. If anyone wants to contact the YRBA I’d love to have a meeting with them,” Elizabeth said.

“I’m also really honoured to be taking over from Tim Bracher and say thank you to him. I look forward to building on all of the fantastic work he has done over his 26 years of service. I’m really excited to have had the baton handed over to me.”

As for Tim, he said he would soon be taking “that long holiday”.

“It’s something I haven’t been able to do for 26 years,” he said. “I’ll then reconsider what I will do for the next 20 to 30 years.”

“I don’t think retirement is in my DNA, so you may see me in some shape or form in the precinct, or at least in the city. I can’t stay away from it.” •