The new Woolworths supermarket was offically opened on Wednesday, June 7, on the corner of Elgin Boulevard and High Street. Hundreds of curious people attended the opening, as well as many Woolworths members and support staff.

The full-line supermarket is the latest Woolworths format and is the newest store within the region, encompassing 4,000 square meters. The development also includes car parking, multiple pedestrian access points and an atrium entrance.

Retail and office spaces are still on offer for leasing, and anyone interested in leasing opportunities is encouraged to contact Corey Finlay of L.J Colquhoun Dixon.

Works on the southern side of South St (Smythe St end) began on Monday, July 3, ahead of the road's reconstruction in September.

These preparatory works will be done in sections and involve replacing the water main ahead of the road reconstruction in September.

While the median parking bays next to the works will be unavailable, overall there will be minimal disruption to through traffic, and traffic management will be in place. Motorists should exercise caution in the area and obey traffic control. Keep up to date with works in Wodonga on the Wodonga Major Projects website.

Wodonga TAFE’s Driver Education Centre of Australia (DECA) has signed its first major international deal to train heavy vehicle drivers across Asia.

Thai company SCG Logistics Management has entered into a five-year training agreement with DECA, which will see the centre deliver specialist post-licence training.

Wodonga Council has recorded another strong overall performance in the annual state-wide Community Satisfaction Survey with its core performance measures exceeding state and regional averages.

The council’s overall performance index score of 63 was unchanged from 2016. It was rated statistically significantly higher than the average rating for councils in the regional centres group and statewide (57 and 59 respectively).

The highest score was for customer service, up three points on 2016 to 78, again significantly higher than the state and regional centres averages. Read the full story.

Downer recently announced the opening of the $4.2 million Wodonga Asphalt Plant that will see more sustainable outcomes in the region.

The plant will use higher recycled content and waste materials that would ordinarily be stockpiled or sent to local landfills. An example of such materials includes toner from printer cartridges and crumb rubber from used tyres.

"We are pleased to continue investing in the local Riverina area, and to working closely with local government and road authorities to improve sustainable outcomes in the region,” said Jim Appleby, National General Manger, Downer Road Surfacing.

Several Wodonga businesses were recognised for excellence at the 2017 Albury Wodonga Chamber Business awards on Saturday, July 15:

• PETstock Wodonga - Excellence in Retail
• Gateway Health – Excellence in Innovation
• Blazing Stump Motel and Motel Suites – Excellence in Hospitality, Leisure & Tourism
• First National Real Estate – Outstanding Small Business
• City2City – Outstanding Not for Profit / Community Organisation
• John Mars – Hall of Fame Award
• Junction Support Services – Employer of Choice
• Tye Spierings – Outstanding Business Entrepreneur

These awards are testimony to the high quality, agile businesses Wodonga continues to sustain and attract.

Clothing and accessories retailer Best&Less will occupy part of the former Safeway supermarket site in Wodonga Plaza.

The announcement followed the $43.5 million sale of Wodonga Plaza to Western Australian property firm, M/Group.

Best&Less already has a presence in Albury and Lavington, but this will be their first Wodonga outlet.

Longstanding retailers Fogarty Jewellers and Peter White's Furniture have wound up their operations on High St to make way for well-earned retirement.

Operating in the central business area since the mid-1990s, both businesses have brought much economic activity to Wodonga as well as contributing to the thriving retail culture of the city.

Michael Fogarty of Fogarty Jewellers has not ceased operations permanently, but plans to open a mobile van on Beechworth Road two days a week from September.

Peter White of Peter White's Furniture is ready to embrace full-time retirement and has leased the building to Highgrove Bathrooms, which is expected to open early August with a fitout already underway.

Findings from the 2016 Albury Wodonga Visitor Economy Trends (AWVET) Report have once again shown the significant role of tourism in stimulating the local economy, with the sector injecting an estimated $742 million last year.

This result represents an increase of $129 million since 2015, primarily due to the increase in the average daily expenditure of visitors. Read the full report.

The Mann Central development continues to meet project timelines, with building structures now complete and roofing and screening scheduled for next month.

The multi-level car park screening to Hovell Street has started and will progress over the next six weeks. Landscaping and paving in High Street and along Elgin Boulevard are also underway.

The developers will handover to Kmart, Coles and Liquorland in mid-August to start fitting out the internal areas and stocking the shelves. Other tenants' shopfronts and services will be completed over coming months.

Anyone interested in leasing spaces in and around the development should call Steve Martin of Stanley and Martin on 0419 269 687.

La Trobe’s Accelerator Program provides you with the opportunity to fast track your start-up.

This program supports the development of start-ups over 12 weeks (from Monday, August 28, to Monday November 20, 2017) providing resources, funding, mentorship and connections to our communities.

Applications are now open and we encourage you to apply to launch your start-up. Please also register for an information session on Thursday, August 3, to learn more about the program.

A new retailer has opened at 123-125 High St – One Plus One Fashion & Accessories – catering for ladies' formal and casual wear ranging from sizes 6 to 26. 

The retailer also holds handbags, scarves and a extensive range of jewellery.

Be sure to head down and support this new local business. Read more.

Supatramp is a new, indoor entertainment centre that provides active, safe and innovative activities for the whole family.

"Seeing Supatramp for the first time is pretty impressive," Manager Luke Preston said.

"We are modern, bright, clean, exciting, and have thought of just about everything for the perfect play day".

Located on 5/2 Romet Road, West Wodonga, the facility has more than 60 interconnected trampolines, a soft-play toddler area, dodgeball courts, air-mat, high ropes course, dunking arena, three-storey playground, a cafe, party/meeting rooms, and more.

"We encountered many challenges throughout the build of the centre as it was no easy task turning an old shed into a state-of-the-art, multimillon dollar facility in 15 weeks, but we certainly got there in the end."

The business plans to release a number of programs over the next 3-6 months, and will work to establish itself as a key destination point amongst locals and tourists. Read more.

The ninth annual business survey is set to open once again on Monday, 7 August, and Albury-Wodonga businesses are encouraged to have their say.

The short, online survey will enable businesses to keep abreast of current and future local trends, with this type of targeted data not available from any other public source.

The survey will be issued to an extensive database and will also be made available on alburywodonga.vic.gov.au, so please spare a moment of your time to participate in this important initiative.

Does your family rely on small business or agriculture for its livelihood?

AgBiz Assist can provide small businesses in rural and regional communities with free financial counselling.

Regardless of your industry sector, the team at AgBiz can assist you with an objective analysis of your business and provide invaluable advice.

Members of the team are experienced rural professionals with tertiary qualifications in fields such as financial counselling, social science, agricultural science, economics, accounting, property or business. Read more.

Have you got a great story to share about diversity in your workplace?

Champions of Workplace Diversity is a new, local initiative that was born from Wodonga Council's 'Creating local opportunities for people with disability’ workshops. It celebrates and promotes workforce diversity by featuring a local business that champions diversity every fortnight on social media.

Champions of Workplace Diversity will also feature articles on a range of topics, resources and news updates about workplace diversity.

To feature your business or to find out more, please visit Champions of Workplace Diversity on Facebook.

As part of the city centre revitalisation, we've launched a City Heart website to showcase businesses in the Wodonga Central Business Area (CBA).

The website includes information on each individual business, along with upcoming events, latest news, and dining and shopping opportunities. It will also complement the City Heart app (due to launch in August, 2017), providing accessible and up-to-date information for locals and tourists alike.

If your business is in the city centre and you haven't already completed the form, send it now to make this most of this free promotional opportunity. Visit City Heart today.

Businesses across Wodonga City can now connect to the nbn™ network – Australia’s new landline phone and internet network.

To connect your business:

1. Check your address: Find out if the nbn is available at your business.

2. Prepare your business: The nbn Business Readiness Checklist and other tools will help you to prepare your business connect to the network.

3. Contact your preferred provider: You won’t be connected automatically, so contact your preferred internet service provider to discuss your requirements and select the most appropriate plan for your needs.

The planning department issued 153 planning permits in 2016-2017 and released 407 residential lots. Read all the planning statistics.

Did you know the Australian Government is providing employers up to $10,000 over six months per eligible young person who attains employment of 20 hours per week (on average)?

According to Chelsea Fraser, Transition to Work Co-ordinator at The Personnel Group, a number of businesses have capitalised on this incentive and are employing more young people – providing both practical and social returns to their business and community.

Any business interested in employing a young person can find out more about the program by phoning Chelsea, John or Caroline on (02) 6056 1833 or visiting Transition to Work.

The total value of building work in Wodonga in the April to June 2017 quarter exceeded $32.5 million, and over 230 building permits were issued. The value of new housing in the quarter reached almost $34 million, with 93 houses approved.

In the 2016/17 financial year, 868 permits valued at over $185 million were issued, and 358 houses and units valued at almost 94 million were approved.

See full building statistics here.

• Population forecasts
• Community profile
• Investment video clip
• Economic snapshot
• Economic Indicators
• Economic profile

The City Heart Shopfront Improvement and Access Fund forms part of Wodonga Council's Business Support during the City Heart Revitalisation works.

A total of $150,000 is available over two years ($75,000 for stage one and $75,000 for stage two of works).

The fund aims to:

• Encourage and facilitate shop owners, operators and landlords to improve their buildings through façade upgrades, thereby improving their presentation to the street.

• Encourage and provide a mechanism for shop owners, operators and landlords to ensure all people can access the front of their premises (regardless of ability or disability).

The fund will include two activity streams:

• $1:$1 matching grants up to $3,000 for shopfront improvements; and,
• $1:$1 matching grants up to $3,000 for internal all abilities access improvements within private buildings that cannot be corrected by the public realm (that is, the footpath) works.

For more information, download the brochure and online application form.