Shepparton Swans players will soon be making use of a new pavilion at Princess Park, with Greater Shepparton City Council awarding a contract for the building of a new facility.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
Two-and-a-half years on from the devastating floods that condemned the WB Hunter Pavilion at Princess Park, Greater Shepparton City Council has awarded a contract for a new multi-use pavilion on the site.
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The motion to award a contract for the design and construction of the new pavilion at Princess Park, forwarded by Cr Anthony Brophy, was carried unopposed at Tuesday’s council meeting, with representatives from multiple user groups in attendance to hear confirmation of the works.
Local company Moretto Building, responsible for the recent upgrades at the Shepparton BMX Track and Cycling Precinct, will carry out the $4.8 million works, which are set to include change rooms and amenities that meet AFL, Netball Victoria and Cricket Victoria requirements, a large social room with commercial kitchen and glass frontage views over the oval, umpire facilities and a 3m wide undercover veranda area.
Tiered seating and a grassy mound will also be part of the new works, which will take advantage of the elevated views.
City of Greater Shepparton Mayor Shane Sali said despite the challenges faced to get to this point, the nett result was a facility that meets modern standards and accommodates multiple community groups.
“It’s been a couple of years in the making, acknowledging it was a challenging circumstance that which has put council in the position that we are in now to work with the multiple user groups to get an outcome that supports modern facilities,” Sali said.
“Not only for football (and) netball, but cricket as well and other user groups that take advantage of that precinct.
“Some of the things that we'll see is change rooms for netball, cricket, football, umpire change rooms, a great community space as well and all the necessary requirements to make a club and other user groups function throughout the year.”
Shepparton Swans Football Netball Club president Jarrod Sutherland welcomed the announcement, which puts an end date on the tough period the club has faced as an inhabitant of Princess Park during the winter.
The old WB Hunter Pavilion at Princess Park has been unfit for use since the October 2022 floods.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
Without permanent change rooms, the Swans have been using portable facilities provided by the AFL since the beginning of the 2023 season, as well as an open-air clubroom nicknamed “The Dome” to host Thursday night dinners after training.
“It's fantastic news for our club, it gives us a bit of stability and a bit of confidence going forward that we’re going to be staying at Princess Park,” he said during a live video on the Shepparton Swans Facebook page following the council approving the motion.
“They (council) said it should take about 18 months for the planning and building of the rooms, which would put us at the start of the 2027 season in our new rooms, so it’s exciting times.”
Sutherland also spoke of the resilience club members have shown during what has been an incredibly challenging period, which now finally has a resolution in sight.
“It’s been a long time coming, but we’re really looking forward to it,” he said.
“I must say, I’m extremely proud of how our club has handled that situation we have had for the last two years, it’s been pretty tough not having rooms, but thanks to the support of the AFL and the council for giving us temporary facilities, we’ve been able to make do.
“Around the club at the minute we’ve got a great vibe, we’ve got a great bunch of youngsters in our netball and our football, and they’re all doing pretty well, so make sure you get down and watch a few games this year and really get behind the club.”
While it indeed has been a long time coming, there were a number of complexities that had to be factored into the decision, with the fact that the new clubrooms would not be covered by flood insurance given the proximity to the Goulburn River chief among those.
“It was important that we did have those thorough conversations, because this facility will not be covered by flood insurance,” Sali said.
“We had to make sure that we build to a level high and dry to allow that if we are faced with a flood episode and in the future, that at least our city infrastructure can be maintained and upheld through those challenging times.
“We need to make sure that if we are faced with that experience (flooding) again, that infrastructure can be above that flood level.”
As a result, the new pavilion will be built about 2.4m above the natural ground surface, to protect it from any damage during future flood events.
Moretto Building will now work closely with council and stakeholders to further develop the concept plan into a detailed design, which will eventuate into construction in the coming months.
