By Oliver Lees
The Woodend Golf Club has been left frustrated by delays to “critical” works to its club room facilities, with the club’s president Barney Hearnden suggesting that visible mould and poor accessibility is presenting a risk to the safety of its members.
In June 2021, Mr Hearnden relayed his list of concerns regarding the state of the club rooms at a Macedon Ranges council, which is the authority responsible for the maintenance of its facilities.
Poor access for people with disability, rising damp, mould and vermin infestation were among the list of concerns presented to council.
Council has since provided an allocation of funding to address these issues, but Mr Hearnden said the process has been repeatedly drawn out and delayed.
“I’m not happy about it at all, I’m very upset,” he said,
“All we’re asking for is to make our space safer and more accessible.
“[The club] is a community asset, not a gated club that’s private property. We welcome dog-walkers and people having picnics, and our golfers respect that.”
Established in 1908, the Woodend Golf Club has approximately 200 members.
One member, who has multiple sclerosis and requires a walking frame, has stopped coming to the club due to the inaccessible nature of the club rooms.
The downstairs area of the club room is also currently unusable due to mould.
In a meeting held between the club’s committee and council officers, Mr Hearnden said officers had stated that works were delayed due to run over costs related to project management and architecture.
After meeting again with council officers again on February 2, Mr Hearnden described it as “the rudest, most infuriating meeting I’ve ever had”.
He said instead of arriving at the golf club at the scheduled time, the council officer had dialled in via phone, and that poor connection meant he was constantly dropping in and out of conversation.
Macedon Ranges chief executive Bernie O’Sullivan told Star Weekly that the most recent cost estimate for the works was higher than the available budget.
“Council continues to work with the Woodend Golf Club committee to address numerous issues of this aging facility, including accessibility,” Mr O’Sulivan said.
“Until relatively recently, council has not been responsible for the maintenance of the assets on the golf course. The issues that require attention predate council taking on this responsibility and council continues to support the club and work within the approved budget.”
Mr O’Sullivan said council is aiming to commence works in April 2022.
