Pambula sport complex to receive more than $3m in state government funds

This illustration shows concept images for the proposed pavilion at the Pambula Sports Complex. Photo: BVSC.

The development of a regional sports hub on the Far South Coast has scored big from the NSW Government, gaining millions of dollars.

The Government’s Multi-Sport Community Facility Fund will provide $3.29 million towards the development of the Pambula Sports Complex Multi-Sport Pavilion Building, Bega Valley Shire Council said when making the announcement on Tuesday (29 November).

“With the total cost of the project estimated at $4.943 million, this funding will make a big dent in what we need to complete the new pavilion building complex,” council’s parks, aquatics and recreation manager John Grady said.

He said the pavilion was the major item in the plans for the complex and it would provide the community with a sports hub for multiple sporting codes and community events. For instance, it will service both the AFL/cricket oval and the rugby league/touch football oval.

Plans for the pavilion include four sets of dividable changerooms, umpire rooms and facilities, kiosks, social rooms, public toilets, accessible public toilets, accessible parking and pathway connections, a covered veranda with a viewing area, service connections and a secure storage area.

“With one central pavilion, these enhanced facilities will see increased use by sporting and community groups across the shire,” Mr Grady said.

Council has said that when completed, the multi-use facilities at the complex would be able to cater for local competition and training as well as provide opportunities for local and elite sport development.

Buildings at the site of the current Pambula Sports Complex, which is planned to be developed. Photo: BVSC.

Mr Grady said that earlier in 2022, council had agreed the Pambula Sports Building project was the main project to source funding for in its parks, aquatics and recreation asset categories.

Council also agreed to contribute up to one third of the total project value, a commitment that was required as part of the grant program.

The new building will replace the existing Frank Mahar Pavilion, public toilets and sports clubhouse, which will be demolished.

While the pavilion is the major component of the Pambula Sporting Complex Master Plan, the specialist squash and multi-use courts, which had been included in the plan, were officially opened in June 2022.

The new funding is the latest announcement in the long journey of the shire’s sporting complex master plans. Council endorsed the plans in 2016, funding was first announced for them in 2019, then council voted to redirect promised funds for its Pambula project to its one in Bega in May 2022 to allow it to progress.

The news of the funding also comes at a troubling time for council, as it has begun the process to potentially increase its rates by up to 90 per cent so it can meet the costs of delivering its services and maintaining its assets.