So much happening of late at Deledio Recreation Reserve in Dunolly, both physically and behind the scenes at Council and Deledio Reserve Sports Committee meetings.
Two weeks ago, 230 cubic metres of concrete was poured for the new netball courts over two days. There’s a curing period of 28 days before the acrylic surfacing can then be applied. During this time, there will be installation of footpaths, shelters, drainage, LED lighting and much more. This project is jointly funded at nearly $1M ($727,707 from the Victorian Government and $242,293 from Council). Completion will hopefully be in May, weather permitting!
At last month’s Council meeting it was recommended that we support an application to the Sport and Recreation Victoria’s (SRV) Regional Community Sports Infrastructure Fund (RCSIF) for Deledio Recreation Reserve Pavilion. This was passed unanimously by all councillors present.
Upgrades to the Deledio Recreation Reserve Pavilion have been a long-standing priority for the Dunolly community, identified in the Dunolly and District Community Plan, Deledio Recreation Reserve Masterplan and Council’s Priority Projects Plan.
The existing club rooms are no longer fit for purpose and the local community envisages a complex which not only provides modern, inclusive change facilities, but which can also be used to host community events.
The costing completed as part of the concept plan’s development, estimated a project budget of $5M in 2020. Officers have assumed a conservative escalation of approximately $1M.
Unfortunately, the funding stream under the RCSIF, which is most appropriate for this project, has a maximum grant amount of $1M.
Therefore, officers have investigated opportunities to undertake a prefabricated and modularised approach allowing the pavilion to be built in stages.
This is not uncommon when building expensive infrastructure and can sometimes be cheaper than building in one hit. Fingers crossed the application is successful.
Mayor Cr Liesbeth Long,
Flynn Ward
