THE Sandon Point Surf Life Saving Club will mark the reopening of the clubhouse with an event on Saturday.
The celebration will include the unveiling of a commemorative plaque by Wollongong Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery and a speech by Aboriginal elder Uncle Roy ‘Dootch’ Kennedy.
The building has been extensively refurbished and has improved storage areas, club activity rooms, amenities and a lifeguard observation room. The updated clubhouse will provide both the growing club and Wollongong City Council’s lifeguard service with greatly improved facilities.
“This is great news for the members of both Council’s lifeguard service and the Sandon Point Surf Life Saving Club,’’ Cr Bradbery said.
‘’This refurbishment has been a complex project as the works had to be stopped in June 2011 when a previously unrecorded Aboriginal midden was unearthed near the clubhouse. Council worked with the NSW Government’s Office of Environment and Heritage following the discovery and modified the project design to minimise any impact on the midden. I’d encourage everyone to come along and enjoy the newly refurbished building and its surrounds.’’

The final construction cost for this project was $3.7 million. The increased costs were due to the discovery of the midden, construction delays and ensuing design changes to ensure the preservation of this important site.