Moruya Country Markets has been running for decades. Photos: Supplied.
After being unable to get a discount for years, Moruya Country Markets organisers are asking why they had to approach Eurobodalla Shire councillors to resolve the issue with council staff.
The market has been running for more than 40 years and is held weekly at Riverside Park. It has a five-year lease with council that is due to expire in June.
Kerri Riches, president of Moruya Country Markets managing committee, previously told Region that council’s charges for markets held by not-for-profits on weekends resulted in Moruya markets paying $113,500 in the financial year that ended 30 June 2025. The figure would be higher this financial year because “significant numbers of permanent [stallholders] are coming regularly”.
For months Ms Riches has been trying to get a lower charge per stallholder on the basis it is a registered not-for-profit that distributes any surplus funds to the community, provides a retail outlet to small artisans and producers, and as the largest weekly market south of Sydney attracts people to the town which is good for local businesses.
It was only after addressing councillors that the impasse between Moruya Country Markets and council staff was resolved.
Council’s draft schedule of fees and charges for 2026-27 now proposes that Moruya Country Markets receives a 40 per cent discount, in line with the discount that SAGE Farmers Market receives.
Moruya Country Markets has been running a petition to get public support for its position.
The market brings crowds to Moruya.
“At the last six markets, many people took the time, often patiently queueing to show their support for our Moruya Country Markets,” Ms Riches told councillors at the public access meeting on 9 June. “Here is the proof: a petition with 183 pages and 1829 signatures that has just been formally lodged today with council’s customer service.”
By signing the petition, people expressed their strong support for the continuation of the not-for-profit markets.
The petition said that after more than 40 years of serving the community, including providing financial support to numerous local fundraisers, children’s sports and local charitable initiatives and organisations, the committee was deeply concerned about the possibility of the markets disappearing from Moruya.
“Moruya Country Markets cannot keep paying over $2000 per week or over $100,000 per year for site rent and remain viable,” the petition said. “We respectfully ask council to ensure that the markets receive every possible support to continue their proud history as one of our region’s most popular destinations for tourists and locals alike.”
Ms Riches thanked all the locals and visitors for showing how much the markets meant to them, as well as the councillors who listened, got involved and stepped in when help was needed.
Moruya Country Markets managing committee president Kerri Riches speaks to councillors before lodging the petition on 9 June.
That raised a question though.
“Why did the market committee president have to ask councillors to help break a deadlock that council management had created and couldn’t resolve,” Ms Riches asked. “Even after many attempts by the committee over a lengthy period to work together and find solutions, our concerns seemed ignored, and the issue stayed unresolved.”
Ms Riches asked how could council staff get better at listening to the community and responding to its concerns before they escalated.
“People shouldn’t have to go to their elected representatives just to be heard,” she said. “That is something that should be happening as part of day-to-day operations and what ratepayers adequately fund a management team to do.”
Mayor Mat Hatcher asked who had signed the current lease and why they had accepted the terms.
“We have always been treated as a commercial market and not as a not-for-profit,” Ms Riches said. “We couldn’t not sign because we weren’t getting what we wanted because everybody would suffer.
“We were always told a lease would be better because it guaranteed access to the land on Saturday,” she said.
Council’s draft fees and charges for the 2026-27 financial year were on public exhibition until 31 May. Community feedback will help shape the final plans that council will adopt at its June meeting.
