STEPHANIE THOMPSON and PAUL MITCHELL
ANOTHER major Loxton sporting club will be absent – permanently – from the town’s $13 million sports hub.
Conceived – and funded – to unite sports in one central location, The Precinct has now lost tennis from its list of future resident sports, joining lawn bowls.
A lack of space at The Precinct – which started life as the “Loxton Recreation Complex” – has been cited as the reason behind the decision to instead fund upgrades to Loxton Tennis Club’s existing grass-court facility.
Ratepayers will now pay $50,000 to purchase a new mower, plus another $15,000 annually to mow the courts, as the local council commits long-term to the club remaining at its current location, at the town’s western entrance.
To cater for the trend of the Riverland senior tennis competition being played at night, the club wanted six floodlit hard courts at The Precinct, among a total of 12 courts at the site.
Club president Phil Smith said members were eager to make The Precinct their home base, but were now committed to “working with council” on the new plan.
“There were lots of advantages to moving there,” Mr Smith said.
“But it’s obviously been decided that there’s not room there for us, so we’ll have to make the best of what we’ve got where we are.
“We’ve just got to move forward. We’ve been talking about where we’re going to be for a long time, so at least we have some direction now, which we probably haven’t had for a fair while.”
Plans to relocate the Loxton District Bowling Club to The Precinct also fell through in early 2019, leaving two of the region’s major summer sports missing from the hub.
Despite negotiations, Loxton District Bowling Club members voted to stay in their current Bookpurnong Terrace location after being unable to “reach a positive outcome” between council and the Loxton Club.
Loxton Waikerie council’s early plans for the project – which was billed as “an entire sporting precinct” – included an outdoor “multi-use” area for netball, basketball and tennis courts, plus two undercover synthetic lawn bowling greens.
A “state-of-the-art” mezzanine was also included in that masterplan, however unlike the bowls and tennis plans, that $1.5 million facility was completed recently.
It offers panoramic views of Loxton Oval and the basketball/netball courts, and can cater for up to 300 people via its bar and commercial kitchen. Funding for the mezzanine was sourced from the Federal Government ($500,000) and council’s cash reserves ($1 million).
In a council report, Loxton Waikerie council chief finance officer Stacey Portolesi said staff had been meeting with Loxton Tennis Club representatives to discuss future plans.
“With not enough area at The Precinct, the long-term (plan) for the club is to upgrade the facilities at the current location,” he said.
“The longer-term need for the club is to create lit, hard surface courts that require minimal maintenance.
“They require six lit, hard courts for senior competition, as the Riverland has moved to Friday night games, and 12 courts for junior development.”
Mrs Portolesi said discussions highlighted the labour required for grass court maintenance and the effect it has on member volunteers, through time and cost.
“This identified (the) importance of a new mower and support to mow the courts in the medium-term and to apply for a grant for lights in the short-term on the main grass courts,” she said. “It is recommended that council allocate a budget capital budget of $50,000 for the purchase of a new mower.
“Council will retain ownership of the mower and carry out the mowing for the tennis club. As a result, an operating budget of $15,000 should also be included for the mowing to be completed by council.”