EXCLUSIVE
Club management has been given an exclusive first look at Petersham RSLs new $33m clubhouse and sold-out apartments which have emerged on the site of a former car park and redundant light industrial area. The new clubhouse sits below one of three residential towers and above 150 much-desired car parks for the members and guests of the new 900-capacity venue.
The ground-level inner-west Sydney club now sits on the corner of Trafalgar and Regent streets, on the opposite corner from the existing clubhouse, and is expected to have a soft opening in July.
The facilities – spread across 3000sqm of space and set to accommodate 10,000 members – include a cafe, pub/bar, bistro, standalone restaurant, kids play area, function space and spacious outdoor and indoor gaming areas for 182 EGMs, although the club is permitted 248. There is also 500sqm of office space for club administration staff who will soon be moving from their workplace across the road.
The new clubhouse and the 199 units in three blocks of Phase II of the development add to 55 apartments in The Regent, Phase I of a long-term plan first proposed 14 years ago.
The new facilities are all in response to an extensive survey the club carried out well before the design process began, with the club getting feedback from both club members, potential members and the wider community.
The long-term viability of the club is now assured with the Deicorp build, ARC Architects plan and Red Design interiors almost complete. The club will retain ownership of 30 units as an additional income stream to that coming from F&B, gaming and the hosting of functions.
Club chief executive and 40-year member Danny Fitzgerald took Club Management on a tour of the venue as finishing touches were being made. The 68-year-old says the long-term viability of the club is now assured.
“My position has always been to drive the club commercially and I’ve done that since I’ve been here without detracting from our community responsibilities,” he says.
Although Danny, with the support of the board and membership, has driven the project since taking over as CEO 14 years ago, he does not see it as a personal legacy.
“I don’t see it as a legacy project for me, I see it as a legacy project that has been delivered by directors past and present and the membership,” he says.
The soon-to-be redundant old club site is set for demolition and will become Phase III of the plan with Danny Fitzgerald saying he is not going anywhere just yet.
Watch the video and for the full story and grand opening of Petersham RSL, subscribe to the Spring issue of Club Management Magazine.
