Major upgrade, retirement complex for Bongaree Bowls Club

The Bongaree Bowls Club is poised for a major refurbishment – including a new retirement complex on a disused green.

Moreton Bay Regional Council gave the 33-apartment project the green light this week, also approving a makeover for the club, which has operated from the site for 70 years.

As part of the club’s overhaul, two of the existing three greens will be converted to all-weather playing surfaces, the club house and external areas will be refurbished to include a re-purposed café/bar and the floor area reduced to create a new focus on outdoor seating.

Bribie Island RSL and Citizens Memorial Club owns the site, leasing it to the bowls club, and applied to build a combination of two and three-bedroom apartments in a four-storey building, refurbishing the bowls club as part of the project.

New opportunities

Moreton Bay Regional Council planning director David Corkill told the Council meeting the retirement facility would be built within the footprint of the third bowling green.

“What this application is doing is providing opportunities for the bowls club to be reinvigorated, as well as providing an opportunity for important retirement housing in the location,” Mr Corkill said.

Councillor Adam Hain (Div 3) said the Toorbul St development, with 19 two-bedroom apartments and 14 three-bedroom dwellings, would breathe new life into the bowls club.

|“They’re (bowls clubs) very difficult to keep viable financially, so it’s a terrific mixed-use outcome – it’s a beautiful design,” he said.|

Height concerns

Seven properly made submissions were made about the proposal, four of them in favour of the development.

The three objections to the plans included concerns about the building height of 15m exceeding the current 8.5m building height; a loss of amenity and privacy; devaluation of existing properties; environmental impacts on adjoining land; and flooding from the adjoining creek.

However a Council officers’ report said the development would be built above adopted Flood and Storm Tide Planning levels and a semi-basement carpark with 48 spaces would include a flood barrier.

See the designs

Addressing concerns about loss of amenity, the report said: “The site is not mapped as a scenic amenity area under the planning scheme. 

|"Nor is the site considered to be a significant or popular viewpoint”.|

Officers also acknowledged the retirement building exceeded the suggested maximum height for the site, but said it would have frontage to open space on three sides.

“The proposed building has been sited to be respectful to the adjacent properties to the east through increased boundary setbacks and building design to minimise privacy and overlooking impacts,” they said.

The land immediately to the east of the site is in a General Residential Zone - Next Generation Neighbourhood Precinct, which allows for developments of up to 15m.

“The proposal has been designed having consideration the zoning intent for the land to east by adopting a building form of a maximum four levels (15 metres), but with the top level being further set back than the three below, so that the building presents predominantly as three levels when seen from Toorbul St.”

The retirement facility will include spaces for 21 bicycles, 50 cars, three bulk storage areas, a barbecue area, green space and a communal pool area