- Cook Government to provide a further $500,000 towards redevelopment of Albany Surf Life Saving Club
- Extra funding builds on State Election commitment of $1.6 million towards the City of Albany project
- Facility improvements include measures to address water safety risks, plus a new community meeting and events space, and training and education room
A request to the Cook Government for half a million dollars towards the Albany Surf Club redevelopment project is no longer a pipe dream, with the swell news from WA’s Sport and Recreation Minister that the $500,000 will be provided.
This latest funding boost builds on $1.6 million given to the City of Albany as part of a State Election commitment. The redevelopment of the Surf Life Saving Club’s building will include:
- relocation of the motorised water safety storage and operations to address current safety risks;
- creation of an expanded and dedicated lifesaving hub to centralise patrol requirements into a single central location;
- a new meeting and events facility to support community and club activities; and
- a new multipurpose training and education space, for club use and to also be available for booking by community members at a minimal cost.
The latest funding boost from the State Government brings the total cost of the Albany Surf Life Saving Club redevelopment project to $3.4 million. The City of Albany and the Surf Life Saving Club each agreed to put in an additional contribution of $50,000 on receipt of the latest State Government contribution.
As stated by Sport and Recreation Minister David Templeman:
“Albany Surf Life Saving Club is a much-loved part of the community since 1917 and keeps locals and visitors safe at Middleton Beach, so I’m delighted we can provide $500,000 to tide over this redevelopment project funding shortfall.
“The Cook Government is proud to fund the expansion of the facility to improve water safety operations through better beach access and new training and education spaces. We endorse the building becoming more available to the general community to make this highly valued service for Albany and the Great Southern even more welcoming.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the volunteers who devote their time and efforts to surf lifesaving it’s an integral part of sport and recreation in Western Australia.”
As stated by Albany MLA Rebecca Stephens:
“The Albany Surf Lifesaving Club is a unique volunteer community organisation with over 500 members that actively patrols our coastlines and provides sport and training opportunities for its members and the wider community.
“This much needed redevelopment will deliver new education and training facilities, improve the safety and delivery of emergency services, meet the needs of the club’s growing membership numbers and better interaction with our local community.
“As a lifelong member of the surf club, I know how vital this redevelopment is to meet the operational growth of the club. I congratulate the committee members who have worked so hard over many years to make this redevelopment a reality.”
