'Yes' vote for Wonthaggi Country club

A MULTI-million-dollar redevelopment of the Wonthaggi Golf Club is expected to follow a momentous decision taken by two of the town’s oldest clubs last Monday night, March 27.

Coming after a commitment made by The Wonthaggi Club nine years ago, the members of the Wonthaggi Golf Club have finally voted to merge with the Wonthaggi Club, an organisation which already has a 25-year lease over its clubhouse, in exchange for significant financial support.

The “vision” for the merger, as described in the Draft Merger Proposal (March 2023) document, put to golf club members in the past few weeks, is for the creation of a Wonthaggi Country Club, on the golf club’s 65-hectare site in the middle of town, that will one day become a major sports and entertainment precinct within walking distance for locals.

Notwithstanding the considerable regulatory and planning hurdles still to be negotiated, in detail the proposal calls for:

• A significant upgrade to the golf course including design, surface, drainage, irrigation, grounds equipment and maintenance standards as a priority.

• The development of a modern, purpose-built Country Club “over several levels to maximise the views over the golf course”, featuring a flexible 250-seat (minimum) capacity function facility, and a modern gaming room with 50 or more poker machines.

• The development of modern, cabin-style accommodation for players and social visitors, as well as sites for short-stay caravan and RV visitors.

• Tennis courts and undercover bowling greens, while also encouraging other sporting clubs and community organisations to co-locate on the site.

• Driving range improvements (including undercover), technology golfer trainers, mini-golf and other facilities providing a golf pathway.

• Outdoor recreational facilities and passive green spaces (including skate park, climbing walls etc).

Leaders of the merger proposal and expansion plan, including Wonthaggi Golf Club President Rob Geyer, Wonthaggi Club President Alan Bolding, and club CEO Steve Curtis say the projects can be funded from within the two clubs and also via loans taken out by the new organisation.

But there is still a proposal on the books to sell a 12-hectare parcel of land, with access to South Dudley Road, considered surplus to the golf club’s use.

“Recently, the Wonthaggi Golf Club has entered into a Deed of Understanding with the Victorian State Government to modify the section 173 agreement on a large parcel of unused land on its existing golf course, in order to sell this section for residential development,” according to Draft Merger Proposal (March 2023).

“The agreement stipulates that the parties will share equally (50/50) in the sale proceeds of the land. Preliminary valuations indicate the land sale value ranges from $9m to $14m. If this land sale eventuates the Wonthaggi Golf Club would bring to the merger significant capital and improvements of the golf course.”

But there are sticking points with this proposal, including the fact that the golf club might get stuck with the considerable cost of rezoning and transferring the land.

And some within the golf club and the Wonthaggi Club have since gone cold on the idea of hiving off some of the site.

But it doesn’t take away from the fact that the merger vote by both clubs clears the way for a significant boost to the sporting and social life of the town, while also creating a new drawcard for visitors.

“It’s a hugely exciting development for the town,” said Wonthaggi Golf Club President Rob Geyer, something he believes will turn Wonthaggi into a sporting destination for visitors.

“The thing I’ve always tried to work on is ‘what’s best for the town’ and the town needs something like this, now and particularly into the future,” said Alan Bolding, President of The Wonthaggi Club.

Having presented members of the golf club with all aspects of the merger proposal the week before, there was a full room of upwards of 120 golf club members present for the vote last Monday week.

With one or two exceptions, the decision was virtually unanimous.

“The result will lead to the formation of a whole new club out of a merger of (the 98-year-old) Wonthaggi Golf Club and (112-year-old) Wonthaggi Club which will take some time complete,” said Mr Geyer.

“But the 10-year goal is to have a whole new country club established on the site here, with major improvements to the golf course a priority (1-5 years) and the establishment of eight visitor accommodation units here within the first three to five years,” he said.

There’s the opportunity too for other sporting organisations, particularly the Wonthaggi Bowls Club, to co-located on the golf clubs’ site, according to Mr Bolding, possibly also tennis and others but that would be up to the clubs themselves.

Bringing together sporting and community organisations would boost memberships and save on costs.

“The existing club will stay in the town (McBride Avenue) for the foreseeable future, but we look at this development as not only being good for the growth of sport in Wonthaggi and district, but also as a new tourism destination along the coast,” said Mr Bolding.

He envisages that Wonthaggi will be able to host sports tournaments, like those at venues along the Murray River, attracting people to the town and providing a boost to the economy.

“It’s all about setting this area up for the growth we are already seeing, but particularly into the future,” he said.

“It will be in our plans to have bowls as well as golf, like the big Murray clubs. It’s a no-brainer to be trying to attract both,” said Mr Geyer.

“We haven’t spoken to the bowls club, but it might be, on their next cycle at the end of the life of the present synthetic greens, that they would look at it then.

“In any case, bowling greens are in our plans.

“People who play golf now might like to dabble in bowls in the future as a way of staying social,” he said.

But both golf club and Wonthaggi club officials have ruled out the prospect of taking on an associated residential development or retirement village project themselves.

“No, that’s not in the scope of the project,” said Wonthaggi Club CEO Steve Curtis.

But it could be the outcome of selling the excess parcel of 12 hectares mooted in the Draft Merger Proposal.

Mr Curtis said the first task would be to formally amalgamate the two clubs and for a project committee to be formed to guide the progress of the overall proposal.

He said a masterplan would need to be developed and approved in the early stages, but concept planning was already advanced.

While planning approval at Local and State government level still needed to be negotiated, as well as such things as the cost of stamp duty to transfer the assets to a new entity, the merger presented considerable taxation, governance and management benefits.

And while the Wonthaggi Club already has a strong record of financial support for community and sporting organisations, the prospect of linking its gaming revenue directly to a sporting organisation would significantly enhance its social licence.

The club officials said one of the group’s first tasks would be briefing local MP Jordan Crugnale and organising a meeting with the Bass Coast Shire Council to keep them abreast of developments.