Funding shortfall leads council to favour refurbishment over rebuild for Denmark Surf Life Saving Club

Plans to build a new home for Denmark Surf Life Saving Club have been scrapped in favour of refurbishing existing facilities after the Federal Government axed a regional grants program. Shire of Denmark council voted in favour of adopting a revised and downsized Ocean Beach concept plan at its meeting on Tuesday, citing “reduced external funding”. The revised plan will result in the demolition of the front patrol and kiosk building as well as a public amenity building. An officer’s report prepared for councillors said demolition of the front patrol and kiosk building “represents a managed retreat of a facility that is at risk from coastal processes”. A new toilet block will be constructed on site with improved accessibility, but it will not include indoor showers. “Given the budget constraints, officers propose to provide outdoor showers only,” the report said. “Officers believe that the significant capital cost would be better spent on improving the public realm and solving site accessibility issues. “Further, the high ongoing operational costs of cleaning and unblocking drains would be better spent on other activities across the site.” A new storage building will “allow improved access for emergency services and watercraft”. The existing DSLSC building will be refurbished to “improve operation outcomes and incorporate a patrol function”, according to the report. The Shire had applied for nearly $4 million of funding for its Ocean to Channel project, which included the Ocean Beach Surf Life Saving Club project, through the Federal Government’s Building Better Regions Fund. It made an application for round six of the BBRF earlier this year before a change in government resulted in the fund being dropped. It had already submitted unsuccessful applications in rounds four and five of the BBRF. More than $2 million of funding is secured for the project through Lotterywest ($1.5 million) and the State Government’s Community Sporting and Recreation Facilities Fund ($625,000) as well as a contribution from the club. The council has approved the commitment of nearly $1.5 million in its 2022-23 annual budget, bringing the total budget of the re-scoped project to $3,624,874. The report said a change in the scope of the project would require the funding to be “re-allocated specifically to surf life saving club facilities, in order to meet the funding criteria”. “To reduce the risk of Lotterywest and CSRFF withdrawing their support, officers engaged with the DSLSC to develop alternative options for consideration in the event that the BBRF was unsuccessful,” the report said. The report outlines three alternatives under the reduced budget — co-locating the DSLSC within the Denmark Boating and Angling Club, a reduced scope for a new surf club building in a new location, or the refurbishment. Co-location was not supported by the DSLSC, while a new building with a reduced scope was estimated at coming in $1.6m over budget. The plan to refurbish the existing facilities, including the demolition and replacement of ancillary buildings, was costed at almost $4.2m. “A 15 per cent reduction in scope is required to deliver on budget,” the report said. “This could be achieved through the detailed design phase.” Shire chief executive David Schober said the Shire was “looking forward to the opportunity to deliver an exciting project for the community at Ocean Beach”. “The Shire is incredibly thankful to the committed funding bodies for their support and understanding through the process,” he said. “We will aim to progress with the project now to deliver significant upgrades to improve the visitor experience for our community at Ocean Beach.” The officer report said construction could start “around April 2023” with a possible completion date of March 2025.