The Moller Pavilion was full last Sunday afternoon as the Bangalow community gathered to discuss the future options of how to bring the Bangalow Bowlo back into community hands and get it opened again for community use.
Four options were presented on how to approach regaining community access and control of the bowling club with a survey (https://forms.gle/PnfvbUzZg2vq55NV9) now open for the community to fill out that will give the organising group an indication of the way the community wants to move forward. The survey also provides a place for comments and questions.
The Bangalow Bowlo was handed to Norths Collective after a majority of the club members voted to amalgamate with Norths Collective in November 2022 with an existing debt of $700 to $800,000. Expectations were that by late 2023 or early 2024, they [Norths] would, ‘lodge a development application (DA) for major master planning work and renovations’ as reported in The Echo. As part of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) Norths had committed to spend $3.5 million on renovations and upgrades for the Bowlo over ten years. On Friday, 24 October, 2025 Norths closed the Bowlo, less than three years after they had taken it over. At Sunday’s meeting, it was clearly stated that Norths had breached, and had admitted to having breached, the MOU on multiple grounds.
Way forward
The first option presented to progress reclaiming the club was that the community come together to buy Norths out, however, it is not clear what price Norths would ask for that option.
The Bangalow Advisory Committee (BAC) who have been speaking to Norths on the community’s behalf say Norths have said it has cost them $2 million to run the facility since they took it over, including the original debt.
This option would return the title of the land and assets to the community and the club would continue to trade independently. However, this option requires either a philanthropist stepping in with a no-interest loan or a low-interest loan which the club would have to repay.
The second option is to continue BAC negotiations with Norths where Norths would hand over the assets to community ownership but would retain a $2 million mortgage over the property for 25 years. While there would be no repayments and the asset would be handed to the community after 25 years, there are risks to this approach. If the club closed for any period of time, which it has done in the past, the ownership would return to Norths at which point they could sell the land. There are also issues around what would happen if Norths collapsed. As one presenter said, ‘the devil is in the detail’.
The third option is to look for another club to take over and run the Bangalow Bowlo. This would initiate an expressions of interest (EOIs) for amalgamation process and involve the club that takes over paying some money to Norths.
The fourth and final option presented was to reject current proposals and start legal action against Norths for breach of the MOU and restart the public campaign to put pressure on Norths to return the asset to the community. Norths have made it clear that they will stop further negotiations in relation to other options if this line is pursued.
Community driven
Meeting chair, Sally Schofield, made it clear that the afternoon was about informing everyone of the options, asking questions, and then via the survey get a consensus on how the community wanted to move forward, and what the community really wants to happen for the future of the club.
Organiser and Byron Shire Councillor, Asren Pugh, was clear that they didn’t have all the answers yet and that it was possible to move forward with multiple options at once.
‘We are trying to be as transparent as we possibly can with the community,’ he told the meeting.
The online survey provides a range of information on the four options that have been proposed and is a place to ‘share your feedback on the options presented, as well as to ask questions and make additional comments about the options, the process and/or the future of the club,’ Cr Pugh told The Echo.
The survey will be open for two weeks at: https://forms.gle/PnfvbUzZg2vq55NV9.
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