While the Covid-19 crisis has greatly impacted everyone’s lives and certainly disrupted the sporting world, the Noosa Pirates Rugby League Football Club have seen it as the perfect opportunity to embark on an innovative new community project.
The plan is set to transform the way Noosa, and potentially many other regions look at how they can better utilise their sporting facilities.
“It’s bold, innovative, sustainable… and it’s community.”
“It’s more than just sport. It is about delivering a diverse range of health, wellness and recreation offerings that will bring huge benefits and positive outcomes to our community.”
Those were the words from Noosa Pirates General Manager Brett Winkler, as he launched the new community hub project that will help transform the Noosa District Sports Complex at Tewantin into an integrated active health hub and recreation lifestyle precinct.
“As a successful local community organisation that has been around for over 45 years, we see our role as more than just playing Rugby League,“ Mr Winkler said.
“This club has helped shape the lives of many for the better, on so many levels other than just sport. Therefore, it’s only natural that we encompass the wider benefits of having an integrated health, wellness and recreation focus, as part of our facility and community space.”
This latest move comes as the Pirates move forward in a working relationship with Noosa Council in order to find a better model that seeks to optimise and maximise the community benefits of this hidden Tewantin gem. Within the precinct there are nine sporting, recreation and community groups that this project alone will provide direct assistance and help to support and grow their organisations.
The Noosa Pirates have been working with Noosa Council for some time after recognising their vision for the Precinct, as the new Masterplan for the site was developed and adopted earlier in the year by Council. The Masterplan looks at a significant upgrade that includes new roads, integrated pathways and bikeways, a specialised play area along with better parking and access to the overall site.
“It was great that as part of Council’s consultation process that we were asked by them to contribute and submit our ideas, next to theirs,“ Mr Winker said.
“It was pretty clear to us that there was an opportunity for someone to step up and that is just what we did. Maybe that’s part of our culture and DNA as a rugby league club but we saw it as much more than just about footy.
“While we will never move out of our core Rugby League operations and business, we clearly see the need to diversify our services and now focus on being a much more, holistic community partner.”
The project will see the current clubhouse transformed into suites for permanent onsite allied health professionals who will service people of all ages in the community. The specialist areas will include the likes of exercise physiology, physiotherapy, social work, podiatry and mental health.
Next door will be a new, multi-purpose community hub building that will house modern change-room facilities (for men, women and people with disabilities), a canteen and kiosk that will replace the current outdated 35-year-old facilities. Also, will be the inclusion of much needed public toilets to service the precinct and upstairs will be community and training rooms that will be made available to the precinct users and other community groups.
In addition, an onsite gym and wellness area will accommodate many of the Noosa Council, State and Federal Government programs and initiatives that are specifically designed to deliver and help support those in our community to recover and rehabilitate from a wide range of ailments and conditions.
“This won’t be your standard gym. It will be run primarily to serve these great programs and provide better access to those that will directly benefit people on a whole range of fronts from senior citizens, to new mums, to young children and families and others,” the Pirates GM said.
While the project relies on significant Government funding, the signs are promising of getting the required support to make this project happen in the short term. With Noosa Council continuing to work in progressing key aspects of the Masterplan that will add greatly to the Precinct’s ‘shovel ready’ viability, current Noosa MP Sandy Bolton has also thrown her support behind the planned project and will recommend it for funding consideration.
At the same time, there are existing Federal Government program options already available, with the potential for more as part of the Government’s Covid recovery assistance.
“Yes, there is still a bit to do but things are progressing well and are on-track,“ Winkler said.
“There are real opportunities emerging right now for us to make this great project a reality, for the whole of the Noosa community in the very near future.“
