Focused on 500!
Hi Everyone!
I started this petition to basically check it was not just me that was outraged and angry about these greedy Councils having a gouge at my expense. I was hoping for a credible number, my mates, a few others, so that I could have some evidence when I wrote to the Council to say, 'Hey, this is nothing more than a gouge, you're offering no support but tripling my rates, totally unreasonably!' So, I was going for about 50, but secretly, I hoped for more! 100 would be beyond my reasonable expectations!
So you can see now, as we flew past 200 signatures, then three hundred, I thought 'Whoa! This is HUGE'! But, the Geiger counter has started to ease up at about 400, (we're at 425 as I write - which is so good!) I guess as all the really engaged people have signed and now we reach the people who care, but not yet quite enough to sign up. But, on the other hand, this petition has only been really spruiked from one Facebook page, the Shine Coast Airbnb host community. So, imagine if we had some decent media behind us!
And that of course it a big part of the problem; Why hasn't media supported Airbnb? Maybe its just that people are more interested in the shock-horror stories of Airbnbs that go wrong, rather than the thousands (and thousands) that go right, enriching guests, hosts and the local community (about half our Airbnb income goes directly on services in the local community, cleaning, laundry, maintenance, management etc.) Why is this transformative small business not getting the respect and support it deserves? And as such not being treated like a cash cow to Local Government.
Well, we can change this, but it will take time and money to do. I have thought about tackling the problem tactically and strategically. But it all starts with the barometer of public sentiment, which comes back to the petition! Please continue to share it. At 500 signatures Change.org will also promote the petition, as it proves it's worthiness as an issue they will get behind, so C'mon 500!
Thanks Heaps
Pip