Moree Plains Shire Council has cleared up rumours that the PCYC indoor basketball facility is being condemned, after the indoor netball competition was cancelled this season.
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Moree and District Netball Association's indoor competition, which is held in the PCYC building, was cancelled on Monday, July 27 - a week after it was due to return on July 20.
MDNA's Ashlee Johnston said the competition was cancelled because she was told the building was set to be condemned and didn't want to risk starting the competition for only a few weeks if there was a chance it would have to be cancelled anyway.
With no other indoor netball facilities available for use in town, and no lights at the outdoor courts to enable the competition to run at night, there was no option but to cancel this season's competition. The cancellation also allowed the club to offer a partial refund to players who had already registered, which NSW Netball were offering clubs affected by COVID-19.
However, Moree Plains Shire Council, which owns the building and leases it to the PCYC, has confirmed that the building is not being condemned.
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Council's director of planning and community development Angus Witherby said although there are a number of issues with the building, it is currently usable.
"It's not being condemned, but it certainly needs things done," he said.
"There are leaks in the roof and it also has problems with the external brickwork. We did an emergency repair to the roof a couple of years ago, but that brickwork needs to come off.
"There have been recent problems with the ceiling in the toilet areas, courtesy of the roof leak.
"It also doesn't comply with modern standards, in terms of disability access. It's certainly not one of our better assets.
"But it is usable. Whilst we are aware of problems, they don't pose any risk to safety."
Council does have $164,000 in state government funding available to repair the roof and replace the exterior brickwork, however they are currently in negotiations with the PCYC and Moree Boars about the future of the entire complex, with the PCYC to undergo a $2 million upgrade, while the Boars are set to build a new clubhouse and grandstand.
"We're trying to work through the Boars' new clubhouse that fits in with the PCYC and car park access; it's a complex jigsaw," Mr Witherby said.
"We haven't yet got the final picture; we're fairly close to getting an outcome to meet everyone's needs."
Mr Witherby said the PCYC is keen to consolidate the basketball and netball courts into the extension of its main building as part of its major upgrade, with a plan to demolish the council-owned building and use the space for additional car parks.
"The PCYC would prefer to manage their operations in one building, not two," he said.
"We're keen to see their development project proceed."
In the meantime, Mr Witherby said council will be looking at how they can use the current grant funding to make the basketball facility serviceable for the next few years.
"The intent is to give it a five to 10 year service life, pending the PCYC's plans," he said.
"We want to get an overall strategy and get a view of council. We'll be asking for council's endorsement for the overall strategy. If council support the overall concept, we'll look to complete negotiations with all parties. We'll also negotiate with the funding bodies as to what happens with the existing grant."
Prior to COVID-19, the basketball facility was being used for indoor netball, basketball, futsal, and the PCYC Saturday night program.
Meanwhile, in the coming months council will be kicking off a recreation demand strategy to determine the future of council's outdoor recreational areas.
"We'll be talking with community and sporting groups," Mr Witherby said.
"We'll do a decent assessment of what our community wants and needs, looking at normative demand, so what other towns of this size would have, and express demand, which is the wants of this town."