Dear RADSPA Members
I trust that you are all well
Following the election of a new Board in November, the RADSPA Board wishes to update you all on our progress on a range of matters and report as follows:
# The new board has met formally 4 times and has had several other meetings with key personnel and small committee meetings.
# The Insurance Claim: Our treasurer Vicki Stokes and committee member Andrew Pull have completed a review of all previous invoices and we are now in a position to advance the claim on the engineer’s professional liability insurer. With the assistance of our legal representative, we are aiming to resolve this matter before the end of this financial year
# New Grant Application: The board resolved at its December meeting to make an application for a Bushfire Recovery Grant. Following a meeting with the regional bushfire grant administrator, the Board has designed a multi-purpose hall, pool, gym and associated common services on land on the corner of Congewoi and Caalong Streets.
The whole facility would have priority usage as an emergency refuge for the region and would include a commercial kitchen. We believe that this facility, if built, would provide a much needed pool, and multi-purpose indoor sports hall for Robertson and the Shire at large.
This site is owned by the rail authorities and they have welcomed our interest in leasing this site.
It is noteworthy that the previous board had negotiated to lease this site, however the Wingecarribee Shire advised that they would require the construction of Congewoi Street. The funds available to the board at that time were inadequate to accommodate this expenditure and the board then negotiated the lease with the Bowling Club. Our grant application includes this street construction work.
Your board members have prepared this application under considerable time pressure, and the application was lodged on Wednesday the 27th of January.
We have been fortunate that one of our directors, Nicholas Gray, is a retired architect and his efforts have enabled us to prepare the plan, have its cost estimated by a regionally based architectural firm and to prepare and lodge the application.
A number of local organisations have given us letters of support along with our State MP, Wendy Tuckerman, who met with us in Robertson and our Federal Member, Steven Jones.
We also received a letter of support from the emergency services coordinator for the Shire, schools and sports associations.
The board believes that the planned swimming pool and multipurpose sports hall and facilities with its wide range of uses would, if built, have an enhanced operational viability.
The grant applications are expected to be finalised in May. If the grant application was successful the project would need to be completed and functioning by May 2023.
As this building is too big for the Bowling club site the board has decided to see if we are successful with this grant. If unsuccessful we will return to the Bowling Club site and try to secure the extra funding through grants to finish the pool. If we are successful the insurance money will enable us to restore the Bowling club site to pre construction levels.
The board expresses its appreciation for member’s ongoing support
Neville Fredricks