Winter has come, and with it cold misty afternoons and early evenings. To lean into the Christmas-in-july vibes and coax people from their cosy homes, we’re encouraging shop keepers to decorate their shopfronts in style. We’re hosting a peoples choice award for the best decorated shop, and helping by providing a nice set of fairy lights to participating shop fronts.

Kicking off by the 19th of June, just in time for Winter Magic this year, and lasting till the end of July (or until you get tried of fairy lights).
The peoples choice award will be announced on July 27th at the chamber meeting, with prizes for 1st, 2nd & 3rd to include gifts and vouchers from local stores and restaurants.

If you haven’t received any lights yet and you’d like some, please use the contact form on our site to send us a message, something like, “I’d like lights please.”
We’ll be happy to drop them with you as soon as we can.

The lights and organisation of the event are proudly sponsored by Bendigo Bank & your local business chamber.

The BMCC Consultation period has opened and ends on Wednesday 27th May.

The focus of the upgrade is repaving the pedestrian walkways to match the top of the street (eg. At the bus stops outside The Carrington Hotel and across the road outside Omnia and Tempus.

The executive committee of the Katoomba Chamber will liaise with council to get clarity on time-frames for construction work. We will be reminding the BMCC project management team to avoid peak tourism periods (eg. School holidays and long-weekends). We are also urging BMCC staff to manage contractors thoroughly to avoid repeats of the errors made by contractors at the top of Katoomba Street and on Lurline Street. 

You can view the upgrade plans and design concepts online at this link below, and leave feedback on the concept designs. https://yoursay.bmcc.nsw.gov.au/katoomba-town-centre-upgrade

Late night shopping has returned to Katoomba for the second time since bushfires, floods and COVID challenged the local economy in the mountains — and so far, it’s been a great success. From the last late night on April 10th, a number of stores have reported strong engagement, alongside an all-ages scavenger hunt helping bring families into the mix.

It’s a grassroots initiative, with local shops staying open late and inviting the community to explore and support local. The plan is to run the event quarterly, with the next late night scheduled for Saturday 11 July, 5–8pm.

Future events are being supported by the Chamber, with the aim of bringing even more businesses on board as it grows.

To stay in the loop head to Instagram page Katoombatownshops. If you’d like to get involved you can message the instagram or contact the chamber to get connected to the right people.

After exploring options across the Katoomba CBD, KRAG (The Katoomba Regeneration Action Group) has secured a new space at The Edge Cinema — set to become a community gallery, workshop, and performance space.

With support from Bendigo Bank (Katoomba branch), work is underway to bring it to life over the coming months, with an official launch kicking off at 3pm on Saturday, May 16.

In the meantime, they’re on the lookout for donations of funky furniture, pots, and plants, as well as volunteer curators to help run the space. The focus will be on showcasing artists who don’t always get a platform in traditional galleries and performance venues.

If you’re interested in learning more or getting involved follow this link.

https://krag.org.au/news/f/the-space-the-edge-1

As some of you may remember, the clock on Katoomba Street quietly disappeared in October last year.

At the end of April, council confirmed the restoration was nearly complete — and now it’s back where it belongs. The repairs were funded through the West Invest grant awarded by the NSW Government to support Katoomba’s public amenities, pedestrian safety, outdoor dining, and street accessibility.

The upgrade includes fully restored clock faces on both sides, along with new internal lighting that can change colour for events, and remote access to adjust the time for accuracy and daylight saving.

A series of murals now brightens the once-blank wall at Pryor Place, capturing Katoomba’s distinctive streetscape and highlighting local landmarks such as the Paragon Café, the old Savoy Theatre and the Uniting Church.

The four panels were created by artist Wendy Tsai as part of a project that has been a number of years in the making, supported by the Chamber of Commerce & Bendigo Bank.

Ms Tsai began the project after being encouraged by former Chamber president Mark Jarvis. After scouting locations around Katoomba Street, she took on the challenge despite early setbacks, including the poor condition of the wall, which required preparation before painting could begin.

The murals were completed at her home before being installed in Pryor Place. However, the project faced further challenges when the panels were damaged — once by vandalism while in storage and another time by strong winds.

Despite these setbacks, the murals now sit beneath the Mountain Boulders mural by Brigitte Hansen, contributing to Katoomba’s growing public art presence and adding to the town’s visual appeal for all to enjoy.

You can find out more about the artist, Wendy Tsai at these links below.

https://www.mtnsmade.com.au/members/wendy-tsai

https://www.instagram.com/wenrts