Narooma School of Arts’ Bob Aston and Petti McInnes, Member for Bega Michael Holland as well as Narooma Arts and Community Centre Project’s Russell Burke and Rob Hawkins attended the project’s briefing. Photo: Supplied.
The Member for Bega has said he was “blown away” by the local creative talent in Narooma when he recently stopped in to check on the development of the Narooma Arts and Community Centre (NACC) Project.
It was the first time Dr Michael Holland had been given a first-hand appreciation of the project by meeting volunteers from the Narooma School of Arts committee as well as the NACC subcommittee.
“It’s great to see the work that’s gone into this true community-led initiative so far,” Dr Holland said.
“Credit must go to the people of Narooma School of Arts for their hard work and dedication to this project.
“The NACC will be a great place to showcase and nurture our growing arts culture, while also providing a resourceful community space for everyone.”
He said the project had an impressive concept design and he looked forward to following the progress of the build once work begins.
The Narooma School of Arts said the NACC will be an inspiring and vital cultural and community centre which has been designed by CK Architecture to meet the needs of the community well into the future.
An image of what the Narooma Arts and Community Centre is expected to look like. Photo: Supplied.
The plans for it include three adaptable studios/workshops/meeting rooms, a large gallery, a catering-level kitchen, as well as parking.
Part of the need for the centre is due to the lack of sufficient arts workshops and meeting spaces for permanent and casual use in the community, which has hindered its capacity to develop the arts.
The centre is funded by a $7.27 million grant from the Bushfire Local Economic Recovery (BLER) Fund, which comes from the Australian and NSW Governments.
The NACC subcommittee’s Rob Hawkins said the centre will be at the heart of the community and will have creativity, learning, health and wellbeing benefits for the whole region.
“That’s as well as the economic benefits through cultural tourism, training and job opportunities,” he said.
“It will also play a vital role for the community in any future emergencies.”
The community was thrilled when the updated plans for the centre were revealed in 2019.
It has now taken more than 10 years to get to this stage, as discussions regarding the centre first began in 2007.
The site it is planned for, which is on the Princes Highway next to the town’s historic Kinema, is owned by the Narooma community and managed by the School of Arts.
NACC had been planned to go to tender to short-listed building contractors by the end of August 2022, finish construction in June 2023 and is due to open its doors in early 2024.
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