As Norths Collective explores the sale of the Bangalow Bowlo after refusing to hand back the keys to the community the local Save Bangalow Bowlo group continue to look at a variety of ways to protect and regain control of the vital sporting and cultural hub.
At last week’s Byron Shire Council meeting councillor Asren Pugh moved a motion to request a report on the ‘Heritage listing options to ensure the Bangalow Bowlo continues as a sporting and cultural hub for the community’ as well as the ‘current land use zoning and what planning instruments allow on the site’.
Broken promises
Norths took over the Bangalow Bowlo three years ago after a contentious community debate over keeping the club in local hands or handing it to the collective. Norths made significant commitments to the community in relation to upgrading buildings, supporting local sporting clubs and maintaining the club for the community.
‘Ultimately, the members [of Bangalow Bowlo] decided to go ahead with the amalgamation, because Norths made it sound good,’ Cr Pugh told the BSC meeting.
‘They promised a lot. They promised to spend $3.5 million on the building over ten years, they promised to fix all non-compliant building issues within three months of the amalgamation going through. They promised to sponsor all of the sports clubs in Bangalow, the rugby club, cricket club, the soccer club, the Blue Dogs, the netball club, even the anglers club; and they promised to maintain the bowling green for the bowlers.
‘All of those promises have been broken.
‘They promised that they would trade for at least three years [from the completion of the amalgamation] to give it a shot to see how they went, they did not and they closed seven months early.’
Established in 1910, Cr Pugh said that the club was a cultural hub where people gather informally, which gives it both cultural and social significance.
Other councillors expressed their disappointment at the behaviour of Norths in relation to the club and the fact that they closed with no notice.
‘My school’s had numerous formals at the bowlo, and it’s a beautiful venue,’ said Cr Michelle Lowe who is also a teacher at Byron High School.
‘It caters to families, and it is really deeply disappointing that it’s closed without any consultation.’
Its closure has also left the town with no live music venue.
In his closing comments Cr Pugh pointed out that the sudden closure had a significant impact on the local community with Bangalow Public School’s year six leaving party likely to be cancelled, the local disability youth theatre group Sprung not being informed about the closure, and the fact that so many local sporting clubs have now been left without funding.
‘The whole community has just been treated like utter rubbish, from glossy pamphlets three years ago to the way they’ve behaved most recently,’ he said.
‘It’s worth noting that the initial amalgamation was a very contentious and divisive process, but everybody in the community has put that fight behind us and are working together from all sides of the original amalgamation debate to come up with a solution.’
The motion passed unanimously.
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