Peregian Beach Surf Lifesaving Club moved closer to regaining independence with Noosa Councillors voting at their General Meeting on Tuesday to establish a 10-year lease with the club.
Council would provide three years of support as the surf livesaving club builds membership and establishes operations.
“It’s been a long time coming,“ Cr Frank Wilkie said.
“A lot of hard work has been done by Peregian Beach Surf Lifesaving members. It’s something the community has been waiting for for a long time.“
Cr Joe Jurisevic said it was exactly what Council had hoped to occur.
In July 2019 Council resolved to offer a three-year Trustee Permit over the former Peregian Beach Surf Lifesaving building to Surf Lifesaving Queensland Sunshine Coast Branch (SLSSC) with a new Trustee Lease to be negotiated with a new Peregian Beach Surf Lifesaving entity, subject to satisfactory performance and progress under the Trustee Permit.
After an extensive community engagement process and resultant community interest, SLSSC now believes there is widespread support for the establishment of a new Peregian Beach Surf Lifesaving Club (PBSLSC) and submitted a proposal this week to Council for a 10-year lease with beach patrol operations to commence from September.
Under the agreement, PBSLSC volunteer lifesavers will patrol the beach during the season (September to May) on Sundays with Council funding contract lifeguard services at a cost of $71,000 per annum on Saturdays and public holidays for three years and Council will issue a permit for PBSLSC to operate the Peregian Beach markets with income to fund surf club operations.
The proposal includes endorsement of a supporters’ club board and a future proposal for a small-scale kiosk on the ground floor at the southern end of the building.
It will prohibit the introduction of gaming machines or gaming facilities and while the lease entitles exclusive use of the facility, PBSLSC has no objection to allowing community access to the clubhouse for meetings and gatherings, subject to the type of use.
PBSLSC commenced beach patrols in 1962 and continued until 1974 when cyclonic conditions destroyed the clubhouse. After an 11-year hiatus the second iteration of the club started on 1 January 1985 and the club was in continuous operation until 2014.
In 2014, PBSLSC faced a number of challenges culminating in advice from Surf Lifesaving Queensland (SLSQ) that it had enacted ‘step in’ measures. S
ubsequently, Noosa Heads SLSC (NHSLSC) assumed responsibility for the operation of lifesaving services including tenure over the clubhouse building and was issued annual permits allowing it to occupy the existing clubhouse and conduct beach patrols under annual patrol agreements.
NHSLSC supplemented volunteer lifesaving patrols with paid SLSQ contract lifeguards at its own cost, implemented a nippers program, undertook building repairs to address maintenance and safety issues and removed the kitchen and bar facilities from the upper level.
In 2018, Council received approaches from community groups seeking space in the building or overall tenure of the building. In September 2018, Surf Lifesaving Queensland Sunshine Coast Branch (SLSSC) made an undertaking to become the permit holder and a report to Council regarding an EOI process for activation of the space recommended offering a three year Trustee Permit to SLSSC over the whole building and surrounds for surf lifesaving purposes.
The permit term provided sufficient time for SLSSC to develop a strategic plan and ascertain community interest to establish a new local surf club.
The Trustee Permit expires on 5 September 2022 and beach patrol services provided by NHSLSC via annual patrol agreements will also cease at the end of the surf lifesaving season in May.
NHSLSC has provided beach patrol services for eight years and from the 2022-2023 season will revert to solely providing beach patrols on Noosa Beach.
During the permit period SLSSC have progressed toward’s the new club’s establishment with an advisory board with broad representation, 70 new patrolling members across five patrolling groups and more than 200 children enrolled in a nipper program.
The Peregian Beach surf club is also ranked highly to attract funding under the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services infrastructure fund.
