It has been a long time coming, but the pavilion at Barclay Street Sports Oval is well and truly taking shape and will provide many local stakeholders with well-equipped facilities by the end of the year.
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Secretary treasurer of Eden Whalers Australian Football Club Nicole Crowe said it was exciting to see the project coming along so quickly.
"It's really good to see. The roof must be going on today, I can see the crane from here," Ms Crowe said, speaking with ACM on Wednesday.
"There have been a lot of local tradesmen involved on the job.
"Now that our season is over, we are looking forward to starting a new season with the finished changerooms," she said.
Bega Valley Shire Council project manager Andrew Foster said the building was nearing lock-up stage and confirmed it was expected to be completed prior to Christmas.
"With the key user groups of the eastern field, the Eden Whalers and Eden Cricket Club, both having their seasons impacted by the pandemic and subsequent restrictions, it is great to know that they will soon have a high quality facility to use," Mr Foster said.
Nicole is also on the Barclay Street Sportsground Committee and said after the football club successfully obtained a $10,000 grant through the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal, evacuation centre equipment will also be installed.
"So many people were down there during the fires, people were evacuated from Mallacoota and came to the footy ground," Ms Crowe said.
"Although the Fishermen's Club was the official evacuation centre, they couldn't accomodate people with horses or pets.
"There were up to 1000 people down there and they were there for seven days, it was really hard geting information circulated to everyone."
The funding will enable the club to have a PA system with external speakers installed, so in they event of any future emergencies, announcements can be made to a large number of people more readily.
Combined with a $50,000 grant from the Business Council of Australia for the fit-out of the kitchen, the revitalised facility will be an asset for many users in the community.
Mr Foster said the Barclay Street Sportsground Committee and other stakeholder groups had worked closely with council.
"The new pavilion building is part of the broader masterplan for the site that also includes an upgrade to the soccer clubhouse, a major upgrade to the skatepark, the construction of a new all-inclusive playspace, the establishment of a set down area for the cruise ship shuttle bus service, a memorial garden and a network of pathways to link these disparate recreational elements," Mr Foster said.
"A vibrant and cohesive recreational and sporting precinct for Eden and the wider Bega Valley community is now becoming a reality."
For more information on the project visit www.begavalley.nsw.gov.au/majorprojects
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Leah Szanto
Regional journalist covering the Far South Coast of NSW.
Regional journalist covering the Far South Coast of NSW.
