communityvibe shall take no responsibility for any loss or damage caused to the communityvibe client or to any third party whether direct or consequential as a result of or in any way arising from any unauthorised use of this report or any recommendations contained within.

Report Date: February 2010

Prepared By

Acknowledgements

The following people have contributed to the development of this Master Plan. Their contribution is gratefully acknowledged:

Table of Contents

1.0 Executive Summary

In order to ensure that the Birchip Community Leisure Centre is able to cater for existing community needs, as well as the future needs of the community, a ten year master plan has been prepared by the Birchip Community Leisure Centre Committee of Management, in partnership with Buloke Shire Council. This master plan identifies a range of issues that may impact on the Birchip community over the next ten years, such as a potential decline in population, ageing of the community, changing recreation needs and ageing infrastructure, to name but a few. It also identifies key actions that need to be instigated to ensure that the facility remains financially viable; is managed and maintained sustainably; and provides the types of opportunities and experiences desired by the community both now and over the next decade.

The key focus areas identified in this Master Plan to be addressed are:

Gaps

Whilst the Committee of Management has operated very effectively to date, there are still some areas where improvements can be made. These improvements relate primarily to succession planning, so that when committee members retire, there are people willing and sufficiently skilled to fill vacant committee positions. The development of a Committee handbook will also assist in the retention of corporate knowledge when committee members with much history of the organisation depart. Additional areas that require improvement are in the continual development of policies to guide decision making and in the preparation of strategic plans such as risk management plans.

Possibly the biggest gap in terms of facilities, as identified through surveys and informal conversations with residents relate to the condition of the public toilets at the site. Both toilet blocks are in a poor state of repair. It is recommended that the toilet block along Morrison St side of the complex is demolished and replaced with a new toilet featuring a unisex disabled toilet, two female cubicles, one male cubicle and one urinal in the male toilets. At a latter date, dependent upon usage, it is recommended that the toilet along Watson St is upgraded.

Several safety issues have been identified at the complex, which need to be addressed as a matter of priority. The first of these is the staircase leading to the scoreboard. This steep staircase with very narrow treads has been identified through the audit and through community consultation as a risk management issue. Similarly, the vehicular entrance to the Leisure Centre complex from the corner of Morrison and Johnson Streets has also been identified through the audit as a risk management issue. To improve safety of passengers in vehicles, it is recommended that the entrance is relocated between the Mallee Bull Bar and the toilet block along Morrison Street.

The audit also identified that existing facilities for people with disabilities and mobility issues do not actually comply with Disability Discrimination Act standards. The ramp to the second level of the building is too steep and the disabled toilets are not large enough to cater for wheelchairs easily.

Other standards which are not met at present relate to the netball court run-off. Should this situation not be rectified soon, it is possible than Netball Victoria will not allow netball finals to be played at Birchip. This will have a big financial impact on the Birchip Football Netball Club and will cause difficulties in terms of scheduling, etc. An additional safety issue associated with netball relates to the fact that there are no barriers preventing a stray netball from damaging cars in the nearby car park. This needs to be fixed by constructing some form of fence or barrier.

The ability to attract spectators to a sports ground is of great benefit financially if gate taking fees apply. However, spectators need to be provided with protection from inclement weather. It is suggested that additional shelter be constructed between the Leisure Centre and the score board to protect spectators from wind, rain and sun.

Cars also need to be protected from the sun. The addition of trees in the formalised car park areas would be extremely beneficial from both a shade perspective and an aesthetic perspective. To counteract the poor amenity of the site, there is a need to improve landscaping around the grounds and outside the Leisure Centre building. Such works could greatly enhance the visual appeal of the site and may encourage more functions or use of the facilities on site.

Along with improved landscaping comes the need to provide play opportunities for children. It is envisaged that play facilities are provided in the current BBQ area immediately outside the Leisure Centre building.

Whilst the majority of the Leisure Centre building caters well for users, there is general consensus that the visitor’s change rooms are too small. A proposed extension to the building, for which funding has already been allocated by Regional Development Victoria, is designed to rectify this problem.

Opportunities

One of the major opportunities that will allow the majority of sports facilities in Birchip to be located at the one central precinct is the potential relocation of the Birchip Bowls Club to the Birchip Community Leisure Centre site. If the club was to relocate to the land immediately behind the Leisure Centre building, the site it is currently located on within Birchip could be sold and some of the funds used to assist with the redevelopment. However, the Bowls Club is reluctant to relocate at present. Their synthetic rink still has a life span of approximately five years and the position of their social rooms allows easy access for bowlers to obtain refreshments whilst watching their team mates in action. It would be difficult for bowlers to achieve the same access to

the upstairs bar at the Birchip Leisure Centre, however, with some minor modifications, the area used by golf for meetings and buggy parking, could be used for social purposes. It is therefore suggested that a potential site be set aside behind the Leisure Centre building for a potential future location. It is also recommended that a review is undertaken of the Bowls Club in 3-4 years to ascertain its position on a future relocation. It must be noted that previous planning undertaken by Buloke Shire recommends the relocation of the Bowls Club to the BCLC and it must also be noted that there are many examples of facilities throughout the state where golf and bowls are co-located.

There is also potential to increase the use of the Leisure Centre building by focusing more attention on the facility as a functions venue, catering for weddings, parties, celebrations, funerals, conferences, events, meetings, etc. However, in order to do this, a number of improvements are required, including: removal of internal wall near the kitchen to improve viewing throughout the function space; the need to purchase suitable crockery, glassware, cutlery, tables and chairs; the need to upgrade the ramp at the entrance so that it meets current DDA access requirements; the need to provide an accessible and DDA compliant disabled toilet on the function level of the building; the need to formalise car parking at the site and provide shade over car parks; the need to upgrade heating / cooling in the centre; and the need to encourage private developers to consider construction of some accommodation in town.

Funding has been allocated by Regional Development Victoria to extend the Leisure Centre building. The proposal is to widen the northern section of the building by three metres, which will allow the extension of the visitor’s football change facilities and essentially shifts the entire building closer to the netball courts. Some alterations would also need to occur to the netball change facilities. Estimated costs for these works are $255,976. A further extension of the balcony (Stage Two) is likely to cost in the vicinity of $75,000.

A number of community members have suggested that they would be interested in purchasing meals from the Leisure Centre on a regular basis if a chef or cook was employed to offer meals on some training nights and on weekends. Additionally, several people also suggested that social opportunities would also be well received by local community members, i.e. activities such as card nights, bingo, etc. Young people have stated that they would like to see bands performing at the venue on occasion.

The current position of the hockey fields has also been problematic. Although hockey forms part of the football / netball league, the fields are located some distance from both netball and football facilities, hence some players do not feel part of the competition. As there are no change facilities at the hockey field, players have to walk some distance to change facilities in the Leisure Centre building. Rather than building another free standing change room, an option is to relocate the hockey field to the grass tennis courts, effectively creating a shared tennis and hockey facility. This would also have the added advantage of reducing maintenance costs and bringing hockey closer to football and netball.

To enhance use of the facility and increase financial revenue, it is recommended that the membership structure for Birchip Community Leisure Centre is reviewed. This scheme, which has been operational prior to the development of the building, involves local residents paying an annual fee to become a member of the BCLC. Fees have not been increased since the scheme was first initiated many years ago and membership benefits have not been identified as well as they could have been. By improving the benefits and increasing the price slightly, it is anticipated that residents will see better value for their investment and will remain as long term members.

Strategic Directions

Based on all of the information presented, including legislative and safety based information, the key priorities that the BCLC Committee of Management has agreed to work towards over the next ten years to continue to improve the Centre and to provide quality recreational, social and educational opportunities for the community are as follows:

 Realign Morrison St / Johnson St entrance to improve safety and construct a new ticket box

 Remove old kiosk and relocate power supply

 Retain Mallee Bull Bar until the facility reaches the end of its lifespan, but do not replace

 Upgrade public toilets near tennis courts

 Improve landscaping throughout the whole site

 Develop shade over the BBQ / picnic area through shade sails or tree plantings

 Develop a play space for young people near the tennis club pavilion

 Retain the tennis club pavilion until the facility reaches the end of its lifespan, and review its use at that point in time

 Renovate two synthetic grass courts

 Mark parking bays for people with disabilities, kitchen deliveries and emergency access

 Formalise car parking in both car parks and around the sports ground

 Rebuild hockey field over grass tennis courts (OPTION)

 Set aside a space for a possible future relocation of the bowls facility from its location in town to the Leisure Centre either behind the Leisure Centre or over the existing car park next to the netball courts (OPTION)

 Install fence alongside netball courts to prevent balls entering the car park area

 Upgrade netball courts to meet industry regulations in terms of run-off and to change surface from concrete to asphalt

 Extend shelter for spectators from Leisure Centre to kiosk / scoreboard area

 Upgrade stairs on scoreboard building to ensure that they are not so steep

 Upgrade toilets on Watson Street side of complex

 Retain horse stables and sheep pavilion in the short term to allow time to find alternative uses; otherwise remove

 Plant sports ground with drought tolerant grasses

 Install sub-surface irrigation system on sports ground

 Upgrade Leisure Centre to include improved viewing areas, extension and improvement to function area, extension to change facilities and removal of internal wall to open up function area

 Install a ramp at the appropriate grading to allow access to upstairs function room for people with mobility issues

 Succession planning for Committee of Management

 Further development of policies and strategies by the Committee of Management

2.0 Introduction

Birchip Community Leisure Centre (BCLC) is bordered by Morrison St, Johnson St and Watson St, Birchip, 300m from the only state school in town, Birchip P-12 College. Facilities at the Centre include:

 Community Leisure Centre featuring:

o Function room that is able to be divided into three sections

o Large commercial kitchen

o Bar

o Change facilities for males, females and umpires

o Disabled toilets

o Secretary’s Room

o Two squash courts with glass walls

o Golf club office

o Golf buggy storage space

o Large indoor spa (unused)

o Outdoor BBQ / picnic area

 One sports ground with training lights used for football and cricket

 Two cricket practice nets

 Cricket storage shed

 Scoreboard

 Kiosk

 Shelters

 Ticket box

 Two concrete netball courts with lights and shelters

 10 grass, 2 concrete and 2 synthetic grass tennis courts

 Tennis club pavilion

 One hockey field

 18 hole golf course with sand scrapes

 Golf practice nets

 Two outdoor toilet blocks

 Cricket social facility (Mallee Bull Bar)

 Old kiosk (no longer used)

 Showgrounds / equestrian facilities

 Car parking, paths, internal roads, water tanks and landscaping

The Centre is located on Council owned land and managed by a Committee of Management. The Committee of Management employs a curator and a centre manager to maintain the facilities on site. Memberships are sold to local residents and an annual allocation to be put towards maintenance is provided by Buloke Shire.

3.0 Methodology

The process used to obtain the necessary information on which to base recommendations contained within this plan is as follows:

 Site inspection of the grounds and buildings at Birchip Community Leisure Centre

 Review of relevant literature and reports concerning the Birchip Community Leisure Centre

 Analysis of local and state sport and recreation participation statistics

 Review of current state and national leisure trends and their impact on sport and recreation programs, services and facilities

 Demographic analysis of the Birchip community

 Surveys of user groups of the Centre

 Interviews with key informants

 Community survey

 Public consultation session

 Examination of potential funding options

 Preparation of basic business plans

 Conceptual plans of proposed works

4.0 Policy Context

The following documents were reviewed in order to gain a greater understanding of policies and strategic directions that may have an influence on developments at the Birchip Community Leisure Centre:

5.0 Our Community

The following table provides a brief snapshot of the community of Birchip1:

Although statistics are not available specifically for Birchip, population projections produced by Department of Planning and Community Development2 indicate that the population of Buloke is likely to continue to decline somewhat each year as per the following table:

In summary, Birchip has:

 an ageing population

 low numbers of indigenous people

 a high number of Australian born people

 a high number of English speaking people

 high percentage of people employed as managers

 high percentage of people employed in farming (sheep, beef cattle and grain), school education, and hospitals

 more couple families without children and less single parent families than the average Australian town / city

 more people who are widowed than the average Australian town / city

 lower income than the average Australian income

 higher number of lone person households than the average Australian town / city

 higher number of people living in their own homes and less people renting than the average Australian town / city

 much lower housing repayments and rental payments than the average Australian town / city

 a population that is static or in decline

6.0 Participation in Sport and Recreation

There are a number of different sport and recreation activities undertaken at Birchip Community Leisure Centre. Each of these activities has been placed in a table and participation rates compared with participation rates of Victorians or Australians to determine any local differences and potential number of participants.

Clearly participation rates for most sports in Birchip are much higher than the Victorian or Australian average for those sports, according to the figures supplied by clubs. The reasons for this variation can be dependent upon a whole range of factors including competition from other sports, standard of competitions / coaching, access to facilities, location of facilities, costs to play, climate, culture of that particular sport in that town, etc.

A survey undertaken in 2005 for the Buloke Shire Recreation Strategy5 found that participation rates for the top 10 most popular activities for Victorians were very similar to those in Buloke. The only differences were that Buloke residents took part in more fishing, lawn bowls and netball than Victorians on average, whilst Victorians took part in more running, basketball and bushwalking.

7.0 Trends in Sport, Recreation and Community Facilities

In terms of sports participation, management and infrastructure, there has been a trend in recent years towards the:

 movement away from many traditional organised sports such as football, cricket, netball and tennis to more individual or small group non-organised activities, e.g. walking, aerobics, fitness classes, cycling, swimming, running, etc

 installation of sports surfaces that help to reduce injuries and increase player comfort, e.g. sprung wooden floors, plexipave tennis courts

 installation of improved spectator facilities, e.g. retractable seating

 installation of facilities to encourage participation by people of all abilities, e.g. use of ramps, unisex toilets with change tables, single storey buildings to allow for wheelchair access, Braille signs, etc

 utilisation of indoor sporting facilities such as Leisure Centres with swimming pools for games and aspects of the training and recovery program for a range of different sports

 installation of lighting or higher standard of lighting to allow games and training to take place in the evenings

 development of environmentally responsible practices such as solar hot water, recycled water systems, etc to reduce the impact of sports facilities and their users on the environment

 development or upgrading of facilities and equipment so that they meet the safety requirements of their designated sport, e.g. extension of netball courts to meet recommended run-off distances

 master planning of recreation reserves and leisure centres to ensure that needs of all existing and casual users are considered in the long term – including the linking of cycling / walking paths, development of play spaces, landscaping and BBQ / picnic facilities to encourage family use of facilities

 development of multi-use facilities and spaces which can cater for a variety of traditional activities as well as non-traditional or emerging activities, e.g. pilates, yoga, children’s programs, women’s day time social competitions, master’s games, etc

 greater emphasis on social competitions mid week during the evenings as opposed to structured competition on a Saturday afternoon

 greater use of facilities by personal fitness trainers and their clients

 greater demands on some facilities by school groups due to the declining standard of school sporting infrastructure in some areas or the lack of facilities at new schools

 greater demand on sporting facilities for special events and tournaments

 greater demand for lifestyle/non-traditional forms of sport, i.e. games that can be played on the street or indoors, e.g. street soccer

 co-location of several sporting facilities to form recreation precincts

 understanding of the relationship between physical activity participation and improved health, wellbeing and social connectedness

 expectation by the community that facilities, programs, services and management will be of a reasonably high standard

 expectation that facilities will be available during a range of time slots throughout the week, including weeknight, early morning and weekends

 expectation by user groups that draws, ladder, information, etc about local sports competitions are available via the internet

8.0 Facility Audit

An inspection of facilities was undertaken at BCLC to determine the condition of existing facilities and identify potential improvements. Another key component of the inspection was to determine whether certain facilities are compliant with industry standards and to identify potential risk management issues. Key stakeholders were invited to attend the audit to provide additional information about management, maintenance and both formal and informal usage levels of the site.

In summary, the audit identified the following issues:

 Need to maintain condition of oval with limited access to watering, therefore consider planting with drought tolerant grasses and installing a sub-surface irrigation system

 Need to increase size of ‘away’ team’s change rooms

 Need to develop a family change / feeding area

 No change facilities for female umpires (although proposed upgrade to centre may address this through an increase in the size of female change rooms)

 Need to upgrade air conditioning in function area of the Centre

 Need to remove internal wall near kitchen to improve efficiency of the function

 Entrance ramp does not meet the required gradient to make it compliant with the Disability Discrimination Act

 Existing disabled toilets do not meet Disability Discrimination Act requirements

 Vehicular entry to site from corner of Morrison and Johnson Streets is a risk management issue

 Netball courts do not meet the required industry standards in terms of run-off

 Poor condition of synthetic tennis courts

 Poor condition of public toilets

 Poor condition of Mallee Bull Bar

9.0 Community Needs

A range of consultative methods were utilised in order to identify the needs of existing users of the facility as well as non-users or potential future users of the facility. An overview of each method is outlined below with a summary of the key needs identified:

9.1 User Group Surveys

Surveys were sent to all users of Birchip Community Leisure Centre prior to consultations in order to identify key issues early in the project. Six of the eleven user groups returned their surveys (a response rate of 54.5%). Those who did not return the survey were contacted in person or by telephone to discuss their ideas at a latter stage of the project. The major issues identified by the following groups: Birchip Watchem Football Club; Birchip Watchem Netball Club; Birchip Cricket Club; Birchip Watchem Hockey Club; Birchip Lions Club; and Birchip Cropping Group are:

 Membership levels are likely to remain the same for organisations surveyed, except for hockey and netball, who both expect an increase in the number of players

 Clubs verge between being relatively satisfied to extremely satisfied with the existing facilities

 Major upgrades required include:

o Upgrading water pressure in netball change facilities to enable toilets to have sufficient water to flush

o Provision of meals

o Gaming / TAB

o Improved maintenance and purchase of equipment for events / meetings / functions

o Change rooms for male hockey players

 Most clubs maintain some of their own facilities and pays someone else to maintain the rest

 The most difficult issues for clubs are:

o attracting / retaining volunteers (e.g. umpires and coaches)

o attracting / retaining members and players

o financial viability

o fundraising

o the size of the league in terms of travel

o securing water for the sports grounds

o attracting / retaining committee of management members

 All clubs / organisations surveyed are administered by a voluntary committee, except for Birchip Cropping Group which has a paid administrator

 Volunteer hours used each week by clubs / organisations varies from 0-5 (Lions Club) to more than 30 (Football Netball Club)

 Potential areas of training include:

o Governance (hockey club)

o Up-skilling of juniors to executive positions (netball club)

 Type of assistance requested from Buloke Shire is:

o Upgrade outside toilets to higher standard

o Weekly cleaning of change rooms

o General maintenance around netball courts

9.2 Key Informant Interviews

Eight key informants (predominantly user groups) were interviewed in order to obtain information about policies, funding opportunities, management issues, maintenance, operations and other information of relevance to the Birchip Community Leisure Centre. Key issues identified by this group of individuals include:

 Tennis Club – repairs to roof and installation of air conditioning required; club rooms hired out for birthday parties and aerobics classes on occasion

 Function Room – well utilised for weddings, funerals, 21st birthday parties, 80th birthday parties, meetings, conferences, etc; potential to offer meals to the community on a regular basis

 Players – retaining players has been a problem for several clubs. Now that water has been returned to Lake Tchum, several young people who would normally play sport are spending their weekends out at the Lake waterskiing instead

 Assistance from Council – difficult to get Council staff to carry out works at the site

 Water – water tanks required at the site; water supply in Centre is not adequate – low pressure and not hot enough

 Administration – difficult to attract people to sit on a committee – easier to get them to do a specific task; some bickering amongst committee members is not productive or beneficial; space required for scorers during football games; lots of parents uncomfortable with umpiring or coaching (particularly sports such as hockey that they may not have played themselves); committee of management succession planning required

 Public toilets – condition of public toilets is very poor

 Canteen – needs to be made bigger

 Mallee Bull Bar – needs to be refurbished

 Communication – quarterly newsletter from the Leisure Centre would be beneficial

 Membership of Leisure Centre – no incentives to encourage people to become or remain as members; could increase membership fees

 Partners – Department of Education and Early Childhood Development contributed funding to the construction of the Leisure Centre and the squash courts; excellent relationship exists between Birchip P-12 College and Leisure Centre

 Birchip Lawn Bowls Club – explore opportunity to relocate bowls club to the Leisure Centre site

 Change facilities – need upgrading to increase light and air flow; ‘away’ team’s change room is too small

 Spectator shelter – shelter required at front of building for spectators (extend verandah along the whole front and possibly make an alfresco area); install more seating around the ground

 Car parking – needs to be formalised, with no traffic in front of the Centre

 Signage – need to install signage which lists all activities at the site

 Public Address System – install a fixed public address system

 Landscaping – improvements needed to landscaping; construct elaborate gates

 Cycling and walking paths – already provided in other parts of Birchip, i.e. to Tchum Lake and around the school

 Play Space – need to develop a play space for children / young people at the site

 Swimming Pool – consider relocating the Birchip swimming pool to the Leisure Centre site

 Conference / events / meeting facilities – consider fixing a screen and data projector unit to the ceiling for conferences / events / meetings; install internet connection at the Leisure Centre for conferences / events / meetings; need to purchase curtains to ‘black out’ room during electronic presentations; purchase suitable furniture, crockery, cutlery and glassware for events;

 Bar Opening Hours – need to ensure that the bar is open on Saturdays when cricket is playing

 Hockey – change facilities are not suitable (females get changed in netball change rooms and males in football change rooms – there are a lot of juniors) – consider tennis courts or new development in Centre

 Memorabilia – need space in Leisure Centre function room for all sports to display memorabilia such as trophies and photos

 Maintenance – continue to maintain and improve facilities on a regular basis

9.3 Community Surveys

Community surveys were distributed to all households in Birchip by Buloke Shire Council (approximately 335 occupied private dwellings – according to ABS statistics). Unfortunately these surveys were not sent out to residents until after the return date, which impacted significantly on the return rate (53 returns, resulting in a response rate of 15.8%). Almost two thirds of respondents were female, with the majority (just over half) aged between 45 to 74 years of age.

Key issues include:

 the most utilised facilities at the site by the general community (in order of use) are: car park / internal roads; BCLC Social Facilities (i.e. bar and upstairs function area); public toilets; kiosk; open space for walking / informal games; golf course; and sports oval

 Facilities which received the highest ranking in terms of their current condition are: BCLC Social Facilities; kiosk; car park and internal roads; and open space

 Facilities which received the lowest ranking in terms of their current condition are: public toilets; Mallee Bull Bar; oval change facilities; netball change facilities; and paths

 Those who don’t use the BCLC cite the following as their main reasons: I have health problems; I don’t know what activities take place there; and I’m not interested in any of the activities that take place there

 The major improvements suggested by residents for BCLC are: upgrade outdoor public toilets; upgrade air conditioning / heating; provide meals on Friday and Saturday nights in the upstairs function area; line marking of car parking bays; and development of an outdoor play space for children / young people

 Basically many residents are very happy with the facility and feel lucky to have such a quality facility in town. A number of comments were made about providing meals on weekends and providing other activities with a social focus such as movies and piano music.

9.4 Street Talk

In order to obtain ideas or thoughts from people who do not use the Centre on a regular basis, or may have not been reached through other consultative processes, the consultant set up a stand outside the Birchip Bakery and informally interviewed people passing by. Fifty three people of both sexes 30 males and 23 females) and a wide range of ages were interviewed (including 10 people under 18). Key needs identified include:

 Upgrade air conditioning and install fans in Centre

 Provide more social / entertainment opportunities such as bands, Bingo and card games

 Provide meals on weekends for the community

 Improve public toilets

 Increase size of clubrooms and away team’s rooms

 Improve hot water service and water pressure at Centre

 Construct balcony to improve viewing over sports ground and netball courts

 Develop outdoor play space for children / young people

 Develop incentives to become a member of the Centre

 Review policy on alcohol costs for functions

 Develop an indoor heated pool at the site

 Develop a group fitness area and weight room

 Develop a café

 Construct additional shelter for spectators

 Improve landscaping around grounds

 Maintain / repair equipment in the kitchen

 Refurbish Mallee Bull Bar

 Construct a picket fence around the sports ground

9.5 Committee of Management Workshop

A workshop was held with the Committee of Management to review results of community consultation and to group issues into a prioritised list and suitable timeframe. The results of this discussion were used to formulate the action plan.

10.0 Strategic Business Plan

The following vision, planning principles and key priorities were developed by the Steering Committee during its final workshop, after considering all of the information obtained from the literature review, audit of facilities, trends analysis and community consultation.

10.1 Overview

Birchip Community Leisure Centre is the only recreation reserve located in Birchip. It currently provides opportunities for a range of both formal and informal recreational, social and educational pursuits such as tennis, netball, football, cricket, squash, hockey, golf, play, walking and running. A number of events and functions are held at the Centre, such as weddings and conferences and the function centre operates as a bar on a regular basis. As the Centre is located only 300m from Birchip P-12 College, there is significant use of the Centre by school students during school hours.

10.2 Vision

The vision of the Birchip Community Leisure Centre is, as agreed by the Committee of Management is:

To provide a sustainable community space that promotes recreation, social and business opportunities.

10.3 Planning Principles

The key planning principles which have been identified to guide future planning decisions regarding programs, services or facilities at Birchip Community Leisure Centre are:

10.4 Management

Birchip Community Leisure Centre is located on Council owned land. Each sporting club has its own committee of management and one overarching committee of management has been formed to manage the entire site.

The Centre Committee of Management comprises of representatives from each user group. The Committee employs a several part-time staff and is responsible for developing policy, overseeing the management of the facilities on site; and administrative functions associated with running the leisure centre and grounds.

Staff employed by the Committee of Management include a bar manager who is responsible for coordinating bookings and functions; overseeing any other operations in the Leisure Centre building; and opening the bar. The cleaner is responsible for cleaning the interior of the Leisure Centre and the Curator is responsible for maintaining sports grounds, general surrounds and gardens on site. Funding for staff wages is obtained from a portion of membership fees, bar takings and the annual funding allocation from Buloke Shire Council provided for the purpose of assisting with maintenance costs. The Committee of Management also use the income provided from these sources to cover the cost of general maintenance, electricity, water, etc.

10.5 Maintenance

Buloke Shire provides an annual allocation to each town to help cover some of the maintenance costs incurred in providing sport and recreational facilities and opportunities to the community. Birchip Community Leisure Centre uses a portion of this funding to employ a part-time curator to assist with maintenance of the grounds. This arrangement reduces the burden on club volunteers and allows them to focus on managing their activities and events. However, the Shire continues to assist with some aspects of ground maintenance such as internal roads maintenance, removal of rubbish and assistance with agreed capital works over the value of $1,000.

10.6 Marketing

In terms of marketing, the facilities available at Birchip Community Centre are listed on the Buloke Shire Council website as well as on the Birchip community website: www.birchip.com/bclc/ . There is one sign on the main road through Birchip directing people to the Recreation Reserve; however, there is no obvious signage at the entrance of the facility. Just inside the facility there is a sign that says ‘George Cartwright Oval’. If this sign is seen by

people who are unfamiliar with the facility (i.e. people from other locations), there may be some confusion as to whether or not it is the Leisure Centre site. There is no indication of the types of activities available at the facility from the front entrance.

It is expected that people living nearby or who are involved in existing activities at the Centre will have a good level of awareness of the opportunities available at the site. However, the second main reason cited by non-participants of the Centre through community surveys is “I don’t know what activities are available there”. This indicates that there may be a need to promote not only the location of the Centre, but its activities to the broader community on a more regular basis through activities such as: school newsletter articles, posters in shop windows, media articles, information supplied with Buloke Shire’s rates notices, new resident’s kits, etc.

10.7 Gaps

Whilst the Committee of Management has operated very effectively to date, there are still some areas where improvements can be made. These improvements relate primarily to succession planning, so that when committee members retire, there are people willing and sufficiently skilled to fill vacant committee positions. The development of a Committee handbook will also assist in the retention of corporate knowledge when committee members with much history of the organisation depart. Additional areas that require improvement are in the continual development of policies to guide decision making and in the preparation of strategic plans such as risk management plans.

Possibly the biggest gap in terms of facilities, as identified through surveys and informal conversations with residents relate to the condition of the public toilets at the site. Both toilet blocks are in a poor state of repair. It is recommended that the toilet block along Morrison St side of the complex is demolished and replaced with a new toilet featuring a unisex disabled toilet, two female cubicles, one male cubicle and one urinal in the male toilets. At a latter date, dependent upon usage, it is recommended that the toilet along Watson St is upgraded.

Several safety issues have been identified at the complex, which need to be addressed as a matter of priority. The first of these is the staircase leading to the scoreboard. This steep staircase with very narrow treads has been identified through the audit and through community consultation as a risk management issue. Similarly, the vehicular entrance to the Leisure Centre complex from the corner of Morrison and Johnson Streets has also been identified through the audit as a risk management issue. To improve safety of passengers in vehicles, it is recommended that the entrance is relocated between the Mallee Bull Bar and the toilet block along Morrison Street.

The audit also identified that existing facilities for people with disabilities and mobility issues do not actually comply with Disability Discrimination Act standards. The ramp to the second level of the building is too steep and the disabled toilets are not large enough to cater for wheelchairs easily.

Other standards which are not met at present relate to the netball court run-off. Should this situation not be rectified soon, it is possible than Netball Victoria will not allow netball finals to be played at Birchip. This will have a big financial impact on the Birchip Football Netball Club and will cause difficulties in terms of scheduling, etc. An additional safety issue associated with netball relates to the fact that there are no barriers preventing a stray netball from damaging cars in the nearby car park. This needs to be fixed by constructing some form of fence or barrier.

The ability to attract spectators to a sports ground is of great benefit financially if gate taking fees apply. However, spectators need to be provided with protection from inclement weather. It is suggested that additional shelter be constructed between the Leisure Centre and the score board to protect spectators from wind, rain and sun.

Cars also need to be protected from the sun. The addition of trees in the formalised car park areas would be extremely beneficial from both a shade perspective and an aesthetic perspective. To counteract the poor amenity of the site, there is a need to improve landscaping around the grounds and outside the Leisure Centre building. Such works could greatly enhance the visual appeal of the site and may encourage more functions or use of the facilities on site.

Along with improved landscaping comes the need to provide play opportunities for children. It is envisaged that play facilities are provided in the current BBQ area immediately outside the Leisure Centre building.

Whilst the majority of the Leisure Centre building caters well for users, there is general consensus that the visitor’s change rooms are too small. A proposed extension to the building, for which funding has already been allocated by Regional Development Victoria, is designed to rectify this problem.

10.8 Opportunities

One of the major opportunities that will allow the majority of sports facilities in Birchip to be located at the one central precinct, is the potential relocation of the Birchip Bowls Club to the Birchip Community Leisure Centre site. If the club was to relocate to the land immediately behind the Leisure Centre building, the site it is currently located on within Birchip could be sold and some of the funds used to assist with the redevelopment. However, the Bowls Club, is reluctant to relocate at present. Their synthetic rink still has a life span of approximately five years and the position of their social rooms allows easy access for bowlers to obtain refreshments whilst watching their team mates in action. It would be difficult for bowlers to achieve the same access to the upstairs bar at the Birchip Leisure Centre, however, with some minor modifications, the area used by golf for meetings and buggy parking, could be used for social purposes. It is therefore suggested that a potential site be set aside behind the Leisure Centre building for a potential future location. It is

also recommended that a review is undertaken of the Bowls Club in 3-4 years to ascertain its position on a future relocation. It must be noted that previous planning undertaken by Buloke Shire recommends the relocation of the Bowls Club to the BCLC and it must also be noted that there are many examples of facilities throughout the state where golf and bowls are co-located.

There is also potential to increase the use of the Leisure Centre building by focusing more attention on the facility as a functions venue, catering for weddings, parties, celebrations, funerals, conferences, events, meetings, etc. However, in order to do this, a number of improvements are required, including: removal of internal wall near the kitchen to improve viewing throughout the function space; the need to purchase suitable crockery, glassware, cutlery, tables and chairs; the need to upgrade the ramp at the entrance so that it meets current DDA access requirements; the need to provide an accessible and DDA compliant disabled toilet on the function level of the building; the need to formalise car parking at the site and provide shade over car parks; the need to upgrade heating / cooling in the centre; and the need to encourage private developers to consider construction of some accommodation in town.

Funding has been allocated by Regional Development Victoria to extend the Leisure Centre building. The proposal is to widen the northern section of the building by three metres, which will allow the extension of the visitor’s football change facilities and essentially shifts the entire building closer to the netball courts. Some alterations would also need to occur to the netball change facilities. Estimated costs for these works are $255,976. A further extension of the balcony (Stage Two) is likely to cost in the vicinity of $75,000.

A number of community members have suggested that they would be interested in purchasing meals from the Leisure Centre on a regular basis if a chef or cook was employed to offer meals on some training nights and on weekends. Additionally, several people also suggested that social opportunities would also be well received by local community members, i.e. activities such as card nights, bingo, etc. Young people have stated that they would like to see bands performing at the venue on occasion.

The current position of the hockey fields has also been problematic. Although hockey forms part of the football / netball league, the fields are located some distance from both netball and football facilities, hence some players do not feel part of the competition. As there are no change facilities at the hockey field, players have to walk some distance to change facilities in the Leisure Centre building. Rather than building another free standing change room, an option is to relocate the hockey field to the grass tennis courts, effectively creating a shared tennis and hockey facility. This would also have the added advantage of reducing maintenance costs and bringing hockey closer to football and netball.

To enhance use of the facility and increase financial revenue, it is recommended that the membership structure for Birchip Community Leisure Centre is reviewed. This scheme, which has been operational prior to the development of the building, involves local residents paying an annual fee to become a member of the BCLC. Fees have not been increased since the scheme was first initiated many years ago and membership benefits have not been identified

as well as they could have been. By improving the benefits and increasing the price slightly, it is anticipated that residents will see better value for their investment and will remain as long term members.

10.9 Strategic Directions

Based on all of the information presented, including legislative and safety based information, the key priorities that the BCLC Committee of Management has agreed to work towards over the next ten years to continue to improve the Centre and to provide quality recreational, social and educational opportunities for the community are as follows:

 Realign Morrison St / Johnson St entrance to improve safety and construct a new ticket box

 Remove old kiosk and relocate power supply

 Retain Mallee Bull Bar until the facility reaches the end of its lifespan, but do not replace

 Upgrade public toilets near tennis courts

 Improve landscaping throughout the whole site

 Develop shade over the BBQ / picnic area through shade sails or tree plantings

 Develop a play space for young people near the tennis club pavilion

 Retain the tennis club pavilion until the facility reaches the end of its lifespan, and review its use at that point in time

 Renovate two synthetic grass courts

 Mark parking bays for people with disabilities, kitchen deliveries and emergency access

 Formalise car parking in both car parks and around the sports ground

 Rebuild hockey field over grass tennis courts (OPTION)

 Set aside a space for a possible future relocation of the bowls facility from its location in town to the Leisure Centre either behind the Leisure Centre or over the existing car park next to the netball courts (OPTION)

 Install fence alongside netball courts to prevent balls entering the car park area

 Upgrade netball courts to meet industry regulations in terms of run-off and to change surface from concrete to asphalt

 Extend shelter for spectators from Leisure Centre to kiosk / scoreboard area

 Upgrade stairs on scoreboard building to ensure that they are not so steep

 Upgrade toilets on Watson Street side of complex

 Retain horse stables and sheep pavilion in the short term to allow time to find alternative uses; otherwise remove

 Plant sports ground with drought tolerant grasses

 Install sub-surface irrigation system on sports ground

 Upgrade Leisure Centre to include improved viewing areas, extension and improvement to function area, extension to change facilities and removal of internal wall to open up function area

 Install a ramp at the appropriate grading to allow access to upstairs function room for people with mobility issues

 Succession planning for Committee of Management

 Further development of policies and strategies by the Committee of Management

These key priorities have been expanded upon in the Action Plan.

10.10 Financial Assumptions

10.11 Financial Projections 2010 to 2019