The NSW Government Is Giving 500,000 People Another $100 to Spend in the CBD on Fridays
Like the original Dine and Discover vouchers, NSW residents will be able to nab four $25 vouchers to use on dining and entertainment.
Maybe you've used all of your Dine and Discover vouchers already. Perhaps you've got a few left to redeem now that the expiry date has been extended to July 31. Either way, 500,000 New South Wales residents will be able to score themselves another $100 to spend on food and entertainment — yes, more free money — under the NSW Government's just-announced new plan.
Wondering what makes these vouchers different from the last lot? They'll only be able to be used in the Sydney CBD, and in the 2000 postcode, to be exact. Also, they'll only be able to be redeemed on Fridays. Other cities, such as Melbourne and Brisbane, have already launched their own Friday-focused plans to tempt folks back into their inner-city spaces — because everyone is still in work-from-home mode when the weekend approaches, it seems — and now it's Sydney's turn.
Announced today, Friday, June 18 by NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet, the vouchers will again cover dining and entertainment experiences, this time to help boost the CBD economy. "We have listened to businesses and know that it's time to make Fridays fun again and ensure the Sydney CBD doesn't just survive but thrives," Perrottet said.
So far, the voucher scheme has been given an obvious name — TGIF — and, timing-wise, it is expected to roll out before summer. Mostly, the vouchers will operate in the same way as Dine and Discover, so you'll access them through the Service NSW app, you'll need to be 18 or over to nab them, and you can't use them on alcohol, tobacco or gambling. Indeed, all of the same eligibility criteria will apply, except one — because you'll be able to combine these vouchers together and even use all $100 worth in one transaction.
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Details about how to register your interest for the new program, and other pertinent specifics, are set to be revealed in the near future — with more information also likely to be revealed in next week's NSW budget.
Responding to the announcement, Sydney Gabriel Metcalf, CEO of Committee for Sydney — aka the independent think tank behind the latest plan to reignite nightlife in Kings Cross — said that Sydneysiders might want to have long Friday lunches to use the vouchers. "In these tough economic times, it's practically a civic duty. We call on the good people of NSW to support their CBD restaurants and use these new vouchers. Have one meal for yourself and one for the country."
NSW's new TGIF vouchers will be rolled out by summer 2021, with exact dates and details yet-to-be revealed. To keep an eye out for further information, head to the NSW Treasury website.
Top image: Barangaroo House by Kitti Smallbone.
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