The beachside home of a 107-year-old club is set to be torn down and rebuilt.
There are plans for the clubhouse of the Maroochydore Surf Life Saving Club to be knocked down and replaced with a modern, long-lasting structure that can accommodate the growing local lifesaving community.
The club launched its vision for its new home at a special event on Thursday.
President Rob Elford said the current clubhouse on Alexandra Parade had aged and was not large enough.
“It was last rebuilt in 1950 and it has had some add-ons since, but it’s not standing the test of time,” he said.
“We are drastically overdue for a new one.”
Club members were asked whether they would prefer to upgrade the venue as a temporary measure or “bite the bullet” and knock it down and rebuild it with sustainable materials.
They opted for the latter.
“We want to leave something for future generations,” Mr Elford said.
A new-look clubhouse would be built to last.
“The current building has a metal foundation inside the concrete and over a period that metal erodes; concrete cancer starts to develop within the internals of the concrete,” he said.
“We have a special building works committee with a brains trust of developers and builders, and they tell me we can build the new one out of sustainable materials, like concrete glass (concrete made with recycled glass), that will stand the test of time.”
The club is in desperate need for more space too, to accommodate its growing lifesaving programs.
“We have the same storage place we had in 1950, when we had one surf ski and one reel,” Mr Elford said.
“Our membership is now tenfold (at 1000 members).
“We have had to cap our nipper numbers (at 350) because we don’t have the space for craft and equipment.
“I have to say to people that are interested in joining that ‘I’m sorry but we’re at our cap’, and that hurts.
“We need much more storage space within the ground level for a dedicated members’ area.”
Mr Elford said the second floor would accommodate social members and guests, with dining and bar areas, and event spaces.
“There could be a 500-seat function centre, and there are very few of those on the Coast, and an education and training hub, so members can do all their training in one place,” he said.
The club has not submitted a development application with Sunshine Coast Council or had a pre-lodgement meeting, but preliminary moves have been made.
“We’ve gone to the state government and Surf Life Saving Queensland and consulted with different planning bodies, but it (the proposed rebuild) is still in its infancy,” Mr Elford said.
It’s anticipated the knockdown and rebuild would cost more than $10 million.
“We’ve already had (financial) pledges from different people, and we will have events and luncheons to generate income for it, but the reality is most of the costs would have to come from government grants,” Mr Elford said.
It was hoped the building would be ready within a decade.
“I can’t see us starting within three years, but we want to be finished two years before the Olympics (which will be held in 2032),” he said.
“We want to be part of the Olympic program on the Sunshine Coast, which will be a hub for events.
“I think it would take about 18 months to build: a complete knockdown and redo.”
Mr Elford said the club would continue to operate its life saving services during that time.
“We would still patrol the beach, like we’ve done since 1916, and the public will still be able to come here, although they will probably have to walk around a bulldozer,” he said.
The club patrols the beach every day and it has a proud history in surf sports competition: it is home to world and national champions.
It has hosted some of surf lifesaving’s biggest events, including the Australian championships in 1980, 2016 and 2021.
One of the sport’s greats, Grant Kenny, famously won the national ironman title at Maroochydore Beach as a teenager in 1980.
