Join the Logan Travel the World Passport

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The City of Logan is a booming hub of some of the best food from around the world just waiting to be explored. From the familiar favourites of Indian, Chinese and Thai to the emerging Korean, Burmese, African, Arabic and Pacifica cuisines.

There are hundreds of hospitality businesses to be found across the city, many of which are family owned and operated by hard working and passionate locals and we are excited about educating the community about the great offerings we have.

The ‘Travel the World’ campaign, an initiative of local Rebecca Cobbing from Nom Nom Logan, is about getting exposure for these businesses and encouraging the local community to discover and experience the city’s amazing foodie scene.

Local food businesses are invited to participate in the initiative and can sign up now with the campaign running from January to March 2022.

Find out more information on how to join the program.

The campaign will be free for Logan food businesses and will contribute to developing and promoting the growing food ecosystem in Logan which is an outcome of the Logan Food Tourism Development Plan.

Sharing the messages and stories of our local hospitality businesses is important as it encourages consumers to think about the local food experiences before buying anywhere else.
This money spent in Logan is more likely to be reinvested into the local economy and support local jobs.

The Travel the World in Logan passport is an initiative by Nom Nom Logan, supported by Logan City Council.

Food businesses unite for shared vision

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Local businesses have come together to explore ways to be involved in the City of Logan’s expanding food ecosystem.

Loganly Grown was launched recently to connect local growers, makers, suppliers and innovators.

The Logan City Stories: Businesses Doing Good session was an interactive event hosted by the city’s newest innovation incubator Homebase, run by Griffith University and supported by Logan City Council.

Participants met potential collaborators and discovered ways to further promote their businesses.

New business owner Sujauddin Karimuddin, from Rua Haung Café in Woodridge, shared his inspirational story with the gathering.

Mr Karimuddin is a former refugee from Burma (now Myanmar) who lived in Malaysia and Thailand, where he helped other refugees, before coming to Australia in 2005.

He learned how to make street food while living South East Asia and now sells some of those dishes in his café.

Mr Karimuddin said the role food can play in nourishing the soul and spirit helped drive the vision for his North Rd café.

He also has plans to develop a place for healing, music and art.

“I want to create a community space next door for open-mic style cultural storytelling and bring different ethnic communities together to develop the soul of the community,” he said.

Mr Karimuddin said his café takings also help support refugees in Malaysia, Bangladesh and Burma.

Mayor Darren Power with Sujauddin

City of Logan Mayor Darren Power said it was great to see so many business owners passionate about continuing to expand the local food economy.

“Our abundance of opportunities will help us build a system that works together so everyone rises,” Councillor Power said.

Cr Power said Council had set a target to make Logan the multicultural food capital of Queensland within five years.

“We have 217 ethnic communities giving us all right ingredients to attract foodies from across the state and country,” he said.

Council will now explore the suggestions made by participants at last week’s launch event to guide future activities, events and initiatives for Loganly Grown.

Spirits of the Red Sand wins Gold at Tourism Awards

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Beenleigh-based Spirits of the Red Sand has won gold for Best Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Tourism experience at the 2021 Queensland Tourism Awards, in recognition of their outstanding achievements and resilience over the past two challenging years.

Spirits of the Red Sand is a relatively new addition to the tourism offerings in Queensland, however that is not stopping them from punching above their weight to win Gold for Best Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Tourism experience among 81 awards presented.

Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC) Chief Executive Daniel Gschwind said the “36th annual Queensland Tourism Awards was a celebration of the outstanding success and resilience that tourism operators displayed across the state and also offered a timely platform to showcase Queensland’s iconic Indigenous tourism experiences.”

Cultural Elder & Co-founder, Eddie Ruska was in attendance and accepted the award with his daughters, Leanne Ruska, Executive Chef and Michelle Thomson, Cultural Manager.  Eddie reminded us that the experience brings healing, which is key to creating stronger connections and breaking down barriers.  You can view their acceptance speech here.

CEO and Co-founder, Mike Tamaki, and founder of Tamaki Maori Village in New Zealand, the most awarded cultural attraction in New Zealand, believes that the post-pandemic traveller is seeking a deeper experience with our Indigenous people and their stories.  “This award symbolises recognition by the industry for the unique delivery of history through storytelling.  It truly does open your eyes to the history, beauty and vibrancy of the Aboriginal people.”

Indigenous man and woman looking at fire

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk congratulated all award winners and thanked tourism operators statewide for their hard work and resilience throughout the pandemic.

Spirits of the Red Sand was awarded bronze at the 2019 Queensland Tourism Awards, the last awards to take place due to COVID, so this milestone and recognition of their commitment and efforts has even more significance.  Head of Marketing & Business Management, Kerryn Collins said “This award is in honour of our team that brings their passion for sharing 60,000 years of culture in a meaningful way, consistently demonstrating their warmth and knowledge. It is also in honour of our guests who pay us the highest compliment through experiencing what Spirits of the Red Sand offers.”

This is a big accomplishment for Spirits of the Red Sand, and one they are not taking lightly. Plans are already underway for upgraded and enhanced sound and lighting facilities, a recording studio to create music tracks as part of a new retail gift gallery featuring 100% authentic indigenous art and crafts. New signage and new experiences are also underway with a focus on creating new food tours that incorporate their extensive bush tucker garden.

Top planning awards for City of Logan projects

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Logan City Council projects have picked up top planning awards in 2021, with The Logan Village Place to Play project winning the Planning Institute of Australia Queensland 2021 Overall Winner Award.

Council officers receiving award from Phil Heywood, Queensland Past President and First Awards Convenor

Planning Institute of Australia Queensland 2021 Awards for Planning Excellence

The Logan Village Place to play project won the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) QLD 2021 – Stakeholder Engagement Award and was also the recipient of the overall 2021 project winner award.

The overall project award is a particularly distinguished award, as it is deemed the best project of all other winners across all categories by the panel of judges.

The citation acknowledged that the Logan Village Place to Play initiative displayed the very best in Queensland planning: best-practice approaches and methods, excellence within practices of the discipline (stakeholder engagement and urban design), and excellence in demonstrating the role, values, and importance of planning for people’s lives.

The judging panel also commended the engagement with children and young people, whilst also including parents, residents, and others in the co-design process, which generated a great design, increased care for and community ownership of the playground and better outcomes for the village.

The City of Logan Climate Change Resilience Framework won a commendation in the Climate Change & Resilience category.

Australian Institute of Landscape Architects (AILA) National Landscape Architecture Awards 2021

The Logan Central Civic and Community Precinct Plan won a National and Chapter award for Urban Design at the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects (AILA) Awards 2021.

The judge’s citation acknowledges the best practice work undertaken as part of the plan, noting that Council undertook in-depth research and engagement with the community, outlined key strategies for place activation, promotes sustainability, and created green network and nurturing social well being. It is noted that the plan sets up clear and achievable goals, providing guidance for future staging and prioritising projects.

The excellent work undertaken by Council’s Place Management team, with engagement across multiple sections of the organisation, has resulted in a recognition of the work that is being delivered for the community at a National level.

Artists render of a future Logan Central community area

These prestigious awards are a recognition of the achievement of Council staff and the partnering consultants involved in each of these projects.  The positive impacts of these projects will contribute to achieving Council’s Corporate Plan Priorities.

Logan looks within for new jobs growth

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The creation of a strong well-trained local workforce to fill local jobs is a key focus of a new employment initiative launched today by City of Logan Mayor Darren Power.

The Mayor’s Local Jobs and Skills Taskforce will develop programs with employers, service providers and training organisations to ensure skills being taught align with available local jobs.

The taskforce will have a strong focus on enhancing employment opportunities for Logan youth.

Unemployment in Logan is 9.1 per cent (ABS: June 2021) with youth unemployment a staggering 17.6 per cent.

Councillor Power said those numbers underline the importance of getting his Local Jobs and Skills Taskforce operating as soon as possible.

“We want to get local jobseekers involved in training programs that will give them skills that align with the needs of local businesses,” Cr Power said.

“We also want to leverage the strong desire among local businesses to support our residents through education, training, employment and entrepreneurial opportunities.

“We want to develop a willing workforce that has the skills and training to apply for jobs not just here in Logan but across the state and country.”

Economic Development Chair, Deputy Mayor Jon Raven said Logan City Council would continue to seek funding from the Australian and Queensland governments to support economic development and jobs growth in the city.

“Everyone knows how good it is to do business in Logan and we’re seeing record investment in our city,” Councillor Raven said.

“We want to remove the barriers to employment and upskill our residents so that Logan job seekers can work for local businesses.”

The taskforce, chaired by the Mayor, will develop a Local Jobs Action Plan to:

  • Identify key employment priorities and local labour needs
  • Support and drive employment and training opportunities across Logan
  • Implement programs and solutions to address local workforce issues
  • Investigate improving the LoganJobs platform

It will also appoint an Employment Support Coordinator to help deliver the core activities of the taskforce and engage with industry leaders and external stakeholders.

Imaging Solutions, which manufacturers healthcare x-ray aprons and other cutting-edge products, is a City of Logan company that has been quick to embrace the benefits of training and hiring local workers.

Several of its current employees undertook a specialist machinist training course with TAFE Queensland and a new in-house training program is planned soon specifically targeted at creating jobs for local school-leavers and youth.

“We know there are a lot of people in Logan looking for work and those who undertake our next training program will definitely be offered jobs in our local manufacturing sites,” Imaging Solutions Chief Executive Officer Glenn Honey said.

The company’s Deputy CEO, Dr John Kapeleris, added: “Imaging Solutions is committed to developing a custom-designed training program that is aligned with new skills development to grow and enrich jobs in Logan.”

After being adopted at today’s committee meeting, the Mayor’s Local Jobs and Skills Taskforce now goes to next week’s Ordinary Council meeting for endorsement.