Merimbula Tourism is fundraising the costs needed to organise the town's New Year's Eve fireworks displays.
The Bega Valley Shire Council, which has previously funded the event, told the ABC in October that it could not afford to this year due to "budgetary pressures".
But Merimbula Tourism board member Lynn McColl said the group was trying to raise $20,000 to run it instead.
"It was pretty disappointing that it couldn't go ahead," Ms McColl said.
Merimbula, along with other NSW Far South Coast towns like Eden and Tathra, traditionally host a large number of Victorian tourists over the Christmas and New Year period, as well as visitors from Sydney and Canberra.
The peak summer tourism season across the region has been challenged over the past couple of years since the 2019-2020 bushfires and the COVID-19 pandemic.
But there's optimism about the summer ahead after regional travel resumed in NSW earlier this month, and Ms McColl hoped the fireworks could encapsulate that.
"It's traditional I guess … it's a bit of a drawcard," she said.
"It's a celebration of getting some sort of normality back into our lives and putting the last couple of years behind us."
A celebratory ending
Merimbula Tourism has so far gathered about half the costs in order to run the event, but needed to get the remaining money within the next three weeks in order to organise equipment like fencing, security and fireworks in time.
In a statement issued to the ABC in October, the Bega Valley Shire Council acknowledged the impact its decision not to fund the event would have on the community.
"Due to a number of budgetary pressures, including the ongoing effect of compounding and unprecedented natural disasters, funding for the community events grants program was reduced in the 2021-22 financial year," the BVSC's Director of Community Environment and Planning Alice Howe said.
"This funding source has supported New Year’s Eve events in the past.
The fireworks were traditionally held at Merimbula's Ford Oval, close to Main Beach and Mitchies Jetty, but could be viewed at a number of vantage points across town, like Spencer Park and Bar Beach.
Owner of Merimbula Aquarium and Wharf Restaurant Anthony Daly said the fireworks were a crucial part of the town's entertainment during New Year's Eve.
"People have already been asking me what entertainment have we got in Merimbula … and it's either to go into a club or a restaurant … but there's limited spaces with that," he said.
"We need something for the families … we need something to celebrate that this year is over with."
