SWIFTS Leagues Club is considering introducing Bingo to satisfy the requirements of its recreation zoning after kicking out the bowls club.
The Booval club intends to build over the three bowling greens as part of its redevelopment plans and is in negotiations with Ipswich City Council to buy the land.
Swifts Leagues Club chairman Stephen Bullow, who is also chairman of Easts Leagues Club on Brisbane’s southside, said he was elected as chairman for his background in stadium and arenas and leagues club businesses and was determined to turn around Swifts into a profitable operation after it had struggled in recent years and the clubhouse needed major repairs, estimated at a cost of $5.2 million.
He said the best hope for Swifts Sports Club was to redevelop the club and give the community a better club venue offering.
Mr Bullow said there was no obligation under the lease to maintain the three bowling greens. Asked how Swifts would satisfy the recreation zoning over the site without bowling greens, he said Bingo was one of the options the club was looking at.
“There is a great list of things that could be recreational but they don’t have to be sport. It will not be bowls,” Mr Bullow said.
“We will be looking at a number of recreational activities which we haven’t finalised yet because we haven’t finalised which of the options we are running with for the development.”
He said there would be indoor recreational activities which would satisfy the obligations under the lease.
“Bingo, playing of games of different type, people being able to have meetings there …,” he said.
“All we have to do is to be able to demonstrate that we are using it for recreational activities then we would be satisfying our obligations under the terms of the zoning.”
Ipswich City Council agreed to use part of Cameron Park to set up a bowls club in 1937 after being approached by five founding members of Booval Bowls Club.
Swifts Leagues Club Ltd now has a 20 year lease over the land after they purchased the club from Booval Bowls Club which went bankrupt in 2001 and renegotiated a lease with the council. Swifts told the bowls club last month they were not part of their plans for the site.
“The main building on the land which is used as the club is getting to the end of its life. This is not because of insufficient maintenance being carried out by the Leagues Club, it is because of the age of the building,” Mr Bullow said.
“This means that overdue and future costs of repairs and replacements will be significant. These costs are the responsibility of the council under the terms of the lease to the Leagues Club and need to be done before the Leagues Club can, in a cost efficient manner, maintain the venue as agreed in the lease.
“We believe that the proposed sale is in the public interest because the council will then not be leasing to the Leagues Club and not have the obligations or responsibilities for council under the terms of the lease. This will save the community much expense.
“We can’t maintain something that is so poor it has to be replaced.”
The club is looking into two options for the site, redeveloping the existing footprint or to build a new clubhouse.
“One version is we keep what we can of the existing building but extend to it. The other is start afresh, but either way, the extension would mean that bowls can’t be played there.
“It wouldn’t be worth doing without the extra car park.”
Under both development options the car park and extension would be built over the bowling greens.
“If we are going to build a new building, there is only one site for it and that is where the first green is where you come off Green St.”
Mr Bullow said the three greens at the Booval club did “not make it a bowls club”.
“Swifts Leagues Club is not a bowls club,” he said.
“We were allowing bowls to be played there.
“The Leagues Club purchased the business and got a new lease from the council.
“There is nothing in the lease about the bowls having to be there.
“The purpose of Swifts Leagues Club is to support Swifts Rugby League Football Club, no other.”
