There are a lot of hurdles facing its recovery.

Brick-and-mortar retail has been in a long-term decline and that's before the bushfires and COVID-19.

Just north, Wollongong's retailers have called Crown Street Mall "outdated and dead".

The outlook is not all grim, on weekends Huskisson and Berry shops are brimming with life and the Shoalhaven is growing in population.

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There has been new visitor information signs put in, a historical walk but from council and government there seems to be no future vision or major projects.

But CBD business owners have been urging council to do more.

Amie Gibson closed her shop along Kinghorne Street in March 2020. Her landlord, Shoalhaven City Council, had not done enough.

For the past five years Kate Inglish has run a store selling baby and children's products from Morrisons Arcade.

She has witnessed the CBD continue to decline.

"It was a happier vibe, now daily we get lots of swearing and drinking - those sort of things do turn people from coming in, especially young families," she said.

"When people come to Nowra they just see a town of empty shops and it doesn't make the people who live here and own shops feel good about walking around.

"Every day you see the heartbreak of people who have had to shut down."

Despite the grim picture, Kate had suggestions on how to improve the CBD.

"A big overhaul of painting, an incentive for businesses to paint their shop fronts, lighting would be really good to make people feel safe.

"I've been in businesses for five and a half years and don't like being in town after hours. I know we're stretched for police but more would be a great help - shoplifting is really tough."

One thing Kate believes could make a difference is putting signage along the Princes Highway.

"There is nothing showing that there is some great shops to see.

"You come from Berry and get to the highway and see McDonald's and petrol stations but there is nothing enticing people to come into town.

"People don't know that there are some great shops."

Shoalhaven Mayor Cr Amanda Findley said council had put out initiatives for shop painting and improving accessibility in the past, but landowners didn't come to the party.

"Council has been proactive in that space about trying to assist shopowners," Cr Findley said.

"Now it is about how do we engage with the people who own the buildings and maybe contacting them directly is something that needs to be done by council."

She said less focus should be put on footpaths and decorations, but rather into things that will actually bring people out.

"For me revitalisation doesn't sit around decorations, it doesn't sit around footpaths because nobody remembers them when they come to town.

"It means how do we activate our streets, how do we get more people onto our streets."