In anticipation of its completion, Project Reference Group members joined Councillors and Council officers for a tour of Trafalgar Recreation Reserve’s new Turra Pavilion this week, ahead of the official handover, scheduled for early January.
The landmark multi-use sport and recreation facility will be the new home of the Trafalgar Victory Football Club and Trafalgar Boxing Club and will be available for use by community and school groups. The pavilion has been designed to accommodate future use by the Trafalgar Cricket Club and Trafalgar Football Netball Club, being situated to service a second sporting oval at the precinct, which forms part of the Trafalgar Recreation Precinct Masterplan.
The pavilion meets soccer, AFL, cricket and boxing sporting code and universal access standards and includes several sustainable design features, such as a 20-kilowatt solar system, sensor lighting and a recycled water system.
Work on the $2.8 million project has been carried out by local company Kubale Constructions, following an extensive tender process in December 2020.
The project has been supported by a $500,000 Victorian Government grant, secured by Council through Sport and Recreation Victoria’s Female Friendly Facilities Fund. Council has contributed the $2.3 million balance through its 2020/21 and 2021/22 Capital Works Programs.
Throughout the delivery of the project, Council worked closely with AVOR Architecture and a Project Reference Group (PRG) that included members from each of the reserve’s sporting clubs, and a representative from Sport & Recreation Victoria, to finalise the design and construction drawings for the pavilion, ensuring the multi-use facility caters to the needs of the ever-growing sporting community, now and well into the future.
When speaking on his involvement in the PRG, Lachlan Wyatt, president of the Trafalgar Victory Football Club, said, “All the clubs were brought in from the beginning to discuss what this pavilion needed, and through the project reference group we’ve seen the design change and vary to suit what we all needed. Now we have this end product that perfectly fits everything we need now and what we believe we’ll need in the future.”
The ground-breaking facility includes:
- Six female-friendly change rooms and amenities
- Two umpires and officials’ spaces with ensuite amenities
- Internal club storage spaces
- Multi-use flex space with recessed office space
- Elevated timekeepers’ box
- First aid room
- Canteen
- Veranda and outdoor viewing with spectator space
- A 200m2 boxing gym
During the 13 October 2021 Council Meeting, Council unanimously voted in favour of naming the Trafalgar Multi-use Pavilion the Turra Pavilion, following the presentation of a community petition.
The name recognises the Turra family, who previously owned the land on which the facility was developed and have been actively involved throughout the Trafalgar Community. The Turra family allowed Council time to arrange the purchase of the land, enabling the recreation precinct to be expanded in future years.
An official opening will be scheduled for early 2022 to celebrate the completion of the works, the official naming of the pavilion and acknowledge the hard work and dedication the community has put into the project.
To learn more about the Turra Pavilion project, please visit Council’s website.
Quote attributable to Mayor Cr Michael Leaney
“The Turra Pavilion has been built to a high standard, it’s energy-efficient, it’s water-efficient and it’s been designed for a sustainable future of our sporting clubs here in Trafalgar and our environment too. This facility has been built to meet the demands of growth in the area and will allow the football, cricket, soccer and boxing clubs to continue to grow. All the facilities are designed to be gender-friendly and increase participation in all sports, women’s, men’s, girls’ and boys’, which is something Council strives for throughout the Shire.
This pavilion is something we should all be proud of, and we’re so pleased we’ve been able to deliver it for the Baw Baw community.”
Quote attributable to Cr Darren Wallace
“This project has come about after years of hard work, planning, and advocating by the local clubs and Council. From the initial masterplan to budget submissions, to the design process and funding applications – now here we are today with a new $2.8 million facility that will cater for all the needs of the football, cricket, soccer, boxing, and clubs that may not even exist yet, well into the future.
The Trafalgar precinct has so much untapped potential and very well could be the sporting centre of excellence in Baw Baw, all it needs is a little thought and future vision.”
Left to right: Project Reference Group members Ray Wall (Trafalgar Football Netball Club), Lachlan Wyatt (Trafalgar Victory Football Club), Councillor Darren Wallace, Mayor of Baw Baw Shire, Councillor Michael Leaney, Council officers Shane Paynter and Chris Duff, following a tour of the soon to be complete Turra Pavilion.
