Clubhouse Re-Opening
Finally, the news we have all been waiting for, the Clubhouse renovation is complete! We can move back in once we receive our occupation certificate, which is currently planned for Tuesday 4th June. We have had one final frustration that has delayed us, a leaking water storage tank for the fire services system. This has now been repaired after a number of unsuccessful attempts. We are busy finalising all the remaining compliance certificates to allow us to open. There are still a few things to finish and a couple of defects to be fixed, but these will not prevent us from opening. We will also undertake car park repairs once all the contractors have left site and the temporary facilities have been removed.
I will provide a summary of costs once the numbers are finalised over the next month.
The current plan will enable us to re-commence full operation on Friday 7th June. We would also like to offer you the opportunity to come and look through the new area prior to the opening. We plan to run a Clubhouse viewing session to align with the Men’s comp on Wednesday 5th June, and the Women’s comp on Thursday 6th June – details to follow.
Even though the bar will not be trading until Friday, we invite you to share a drink in the new member’s area on us on Thursday 6th June from 4.30pm till 6pm.
In addition to the above, once we receive our occupational certificates (Tuesday 4th June), we will allow access to the toilet facilities within the Club. Thank you for your understanding while the temporary toilets have been in place-they were less than ideal, but unfortunately, we had limited options towards the end of the project.
Just a reminder that once trading commences, you will need to show your members’ card to get your discount at both the bar and the café, advising of your membership number will no longer be acceptable. You can use the membership card provided, or if you prefer you can use the digital card in the MVGC app on your phone (Click here to see where the membership card icon is located on our app). If you wish to get a new member card, please contact the Reception.
The Cafe
The Waterview Cafe – will also commence operation when the Club opens and will provide a full breakfast and lunch service from 6:30am – 3:00pm, also providing a snack service from 3pm till 6pm on Wednesday to Saturday. On Thursdays, the full cafe operation will remain open until the Women’s Competition is completed.
The Mona Social – The Boathouse Group
The Boathouse have been able to get their occupation certificate on Thursday 30th May. Their official opening is on Friday 31st May. Take the opportunity to drop in for a drink or a meal and see the great space they have created. Again, remember to show your member’s card to receive your discount. The discount is only available on full priced Food & Beverages.
Course Re-Routing Trial
The course will return to its original routing on Friday 31st May. In our next member survey, we will be seeking responses from you regarding your routing preference. To keep the current routing as a permanent change would require investment in certain areas (eg. cart paths, signage etc.) and we would need to prioritise this expenditure along with our other investment needs.
Car Parking
At the recent EGM, one of the main concerns raised was the availability of car parking.
As you will know, car parking availability has been an issue at the Club for many years. Our main car park has a capacity of approximately 82 spaces. When we invested in creating the overflow carpark in June 2019 (due to the introduction of the B-Line bus service), this created another 50 more spaces. We also successfully lobbied for the Northern Beaches Council to change 36 of the available spaces in Golf Avenue closest to the Club to 6-hour parking to provide more availability to members, as well as changing the garbage bin pick-up day from Wednesday to Tuesday.
There has been a fair amount of turmoil during the project and quite a number of the car park spots were not available. Most of these have now been restored and the remainder will return when the temporary facilities are removed.
Since the EGM, we have been actively reviewing the car park usage and established the following:
- Golf Avenue parking has returned to pre-COVID levels and B-line users have generally filled all of the available all-day parking spots by 8:30am.
- The Council is not policing the 6-hour spots. Residents, the public, and a number of contractor vehicles have been using these spaces.
- We are at member number capacity for 6 and 7 Day male members, which is creating heavier usage on the main competition days.
- The main days where there seem to be capacity issues are Tuesday and Wednesday.
- The primary time for capacity issues is between 10:45am and 11:45am.
We have been trialling a process of keeping the overflow carpark closed until the main carpark is at capacity, and whilst we still have the temporary facilities, we have also allowed around 10-12 cars to park near the practice nets. We have also had staff actively managing the parking process to try to be as effective as possible but this will not be a sustainable permanent option.
We have also discussed putting boom-gates across the parking entrance and exit but with the large number of public players we have to cater for in non-competition periods, this hasn’t been seen as a practical solution.
There is no guarantee of parking availability for every member. With the overflow car park and the implementation of 6-hour parking, we have been as proactive as possible to create the maximum number of spots available. Capacity issues do not occur every day and the biggest concern is during the crossover of morning and afternoon players. However, we understand members’ concerns about the extra demands on the car parking caused by the inclusion of The Mona Social and Waterview cafe guests. We will continue to monitor the car park usage once these venues are operating.
Short-Term Plan
- No staff of the MVGC, Boathouse or Cafe will use members carpark
- We will contact council and ask them to police the 6-hour parking spots.
- We will keep the overflow car park closed until the morning field is completed, releasing this space for up to 50 vehicles which should assist the members parking during the busier time .
- We will use the area near practice nets if necessary, which provides a further 10 -12 spaces. If this is a continuous requirement, we will erect netting in this area to protect vehicles.
- We will assess the impact of extra cars due to Boathouse /Café operations.
Potential Longer-Term Option
- Requires considerable investment and alterations to the course layout.
- We have approached Craig Parry to look at potential extensions behind 1st and 7th tees and also extending further down the 10th hole with the probability that it would become a Par 3 or short exciting Par 4.
Subscription Renewals
We have had a great response to our request for early payment of next year’s subscriptions with 17% of members paid by the end of April and a lot more in May. We also achieved the number of 5-year memberships we were targeting. Thanks to all members who have taken either option, it has enabled us to eliminate our overdraft usage after just 1 month, it has been a great help.
We would ask all remaining members to pay their subscription notices before the due date or earlier if possible. I appreciate your ongoing support in this regard.
I look forward to welcoming you into our new facility, which we are sure will provide our members and guests with a venue they are proud of and that complements our fine golf course. Lance Barnes
Club President
