Trafalgar sporting clubs and community members have come together to celebrate the official opening of two major upgrades to the town’s sporting infrastructure.
With official openings delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ribbons were cut at long last to mark the completion of the Trafalgar Multi-Use Pavilion and Trafalgar Synthetic Bowling Rink projects on Saturday 5 March 2022.
Parliamentary Secretary for Sport and for Regional Victoria, Danielle Green MP, Baw Baw Shire Councillors, CEO Mark Dupe, and Council Officers joined the Trafalgar Bowling Club, Trafalgar Football Netball Club, Trafalgar Victory Football Club, Trafalgar Boxing Gym, Gippsland FC, members of the Turra family and community members to celebrate the openings and take in the new facilities.
Trafalgar Multi-Use Pavilion
A landmark facility for the town, the Turra Pavilion is a game changer for the local sporting clubs. Boasting six changerooms and amenities, umpires and officials’ spaces, club storage, multi-use flex spaces, elevated timekeepers’ box, a first aid room, canteen and a 200m2 boxing gym it provides everything the clubs need now and will need in the future.
The pavilion’s 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.
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.
When asked about seeing their family name on the pavilion for the first time, Pauline and Michelle Turra said “we are honoured and very proud to see our family name on the pavilion, and it will be special for future generations of the family to come and see our family’s legacy and recognise the blood, sweat and tears that brothers Dominic, Jimmy and Frank Turra put into developing the farm on which the pavilion now sits.”
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.
The two-year project has been officially completed by local contractor, Kubale Constructions and clubs are now able to begin using the facility.
Trafalgar Boxing Gym head coach Shane Cameron is excited to start using the facility and expects to grow his club after a hard two years of lockdowns. “It will provide us with room to grow and expand the club and offer new programs, additional classes and be able to run competitions at the facility, he said. “[It] will definitely be a drawcard for people looking to join a club”.
The Trafalgar Victory Football Club are looking forward to their first season in the state-of-the-art pavilion. “We’ve already had more players wanting to come to the club and we haven’t even started using the facility yet,” said club president Lachlan Wyatt. “We could say that we’ve got the best fields in Gippsland and now we’ve got the best pavilion too, why wouldn’t you want to come and play here.
“I’d really like to thank the Trafalgar Victory Football Club committee, Baw Baw Shire Councillors, Council staff and the project team, the Victorian Government, and the project reference group for all over their work in making this project possible.”
To learn more about the Turra Pavilion project, please visit Council’s website.
Trafalgar Bowling Club Synthetic Rink
The conversion of one of the Trafalgar Bowling Club’s bowling rinks from a turf to a synthetic surface had long been a dream of the club and after a successful grant application from Baw Baw Shire Council on behalf of the club, those dreams are now reality.
The new synthetic rink has enhanced useability of the facility and will provide the club and wider community the ability to play through the wet Gippsland winters – something that previously was unthinkable and would cause costly damage to the bowling greens.
The $200,000 redevelopment was delivered by the Trafalgar Bowling Club in partnership with the Victorian Government, who contributed $134,000 through Sport and Recreation Victoria’s Local Sports and Infrastructure Fund. Baw Baw Shire Council were able to support the club through the construction process after securing the grant funding, with Council’s Recreation Team working closely with the club and contractor to ensure the project ran smoothly.
Club president Ian Miles was extremely grateful for the funding and Council’s support throughout the project. “I would like to acknowledge Baw Baw Shire’s Shane Paynter and David McMahon, who I think could see what a development like this would have on our club and community in general”, he said.
The Trafalgar Bowling Club was able to contribute $60,000 to the project after four years of fundraising by the club and committee members. To meet the project shortfall, Council contributed the remaining $6,000 as part of its 2021/22 Capital Works Program.
Prior to this project coming to fruition, Trafalgar residents had to travel to other communities such as Moe, Warragul and Drouin to bowl at clubs that can remain open, having their own synthetic greens.
Having their own synthetic surface has been a revelation for the club and has provided the ability to explore additional programming and growth opportunities. Already the new surface has attracted more players to the club, both competitively and socially, resulting in additional teams being entered into their Saturday and midweek pennant competitions.
When asked about the benefits the new synthetic rink has brought to the club, Ian said, “none of us could have imagined what a positive effect it would have on our club and our community. When our turf green closes for the winter, Trafalgar Bowls Club will stay open for all players to come and enjoy our new facilities.”
Quotes attributable to Mayor Michael Leaney:
“Both of these projects are fantastic additions to the township of Trafalgar and are excellent examples of the different ways that Council can support clubs and community groups; it’s not just a matter of Council investing financially, but also being able to provide the skill and expertise to help clubs achieve their goals through things like grant applications.
We know that Trafalgar and Baw Baw as a whole will continue to grow and that the need for sporting and social infrastructure continues to grow with it. We need to build now for future demand so we’re thankful for the Victorian Government who have supported both of these projects that will benefit our communities for many years to come.”
Quotes attributable to Councillor Darren Wallace:
“As a Trafalgar resident and East Ward Councillor, I am proud that Council has been able to play a role in both of these badly needed projects. It has been a long time coming, but the hard work that all of the clubs and project reference group members have put in has paid off. Their advocacy and willingness to work with Council on both projects has ensured that what we have today are two truly great facilities that will benefit the clubs, and community members, now and well into the future.
I would like to again extend my thanks to the Turra family for their role in the Trafalgar community and for working with Council to make sure the future of recreation in Trafalgar is a bright one.”
(Photo: Jim Turra, Rosemary Turra, wife of Dominic Turra (deceased), Danielle Green MP, and Frank Turra preparing to cut the ribbon and officially open the Turra Pavilion.)
(Photo: Members of the project reference group Jamie Marslen, Ray Wall, Sebastian Hassett – Head of Facilities and Government Relations for Football Victoria, Liam Durkin, Peter Boyes, Shane Cameron, Danielle Green MP, Deputy Mayor Annemarie McCabe, Cr Darren Wallace, Mark Judd, Lachlan Wyatt, Alec Edmondson and Cr Peter Kostos celebrate the opening of the Turra Pavilion.)
(Photo: Members of the Turra family were on hand to celebrate the opening of the pavilion, which sits on land that was once their family farm.)
(Photo: Danielle Green MP, Trafalgar Boxing Club Head Coach, Shane Cameron and Cr Peter Kostos checked out the next boxing gym facilities in the Turra Pavilion during the facility tour.)
(Photo: Following the official opening, the Turra family, club members and guests were given a tour of the Turra Pavilion by Shane Paynter, Coordinator Recreation at Baw Baw Shire Council. Jef Thege explained the inspiration behind his ‘Blood, Sweat and Tears’ art piece and how it pays homage to the town of Trafalgar and the Turra family.)
(Photo: Cr Darren Wallace, Trafalgar Bowls Club President Ian Miles, Danielle Green MP, Cr Peter Kostos and Deputy Mayor Annemarie McCabe cutting the ribbon to officially open the new synthetic bowling rink at the Trafalgar Bowling Club.)
(Photo: The Trafalgar Bowling Club celebrated the official opening of their new synthetic bowling rink which allows them to play through winter for the first time.)
