Albany Surf Life Saving Club bids for council support to expand facility amid membership swell

The Albany Surf Life Saving Club is calling for council support for an estimated $2.5 million expansion of its Middleton Beach base to boost safety and improve the venue for other community groups.

The club has recorded a 42 per cent surge in membership in five years and says the existing facility is bursting at the seams.

At a committee meeting tonight, City of Albany councillors will consider an officer’s recommendation to commit $300,000 funding and a $100,000 in-kind contribution towards the revamp of the community facility.

The club has already secured $1.6m as a 2021 State election promise from the McGowan Government.

According to an officer’s report, the swell in membership and equipment has caused “significant challenges for the club and how it services the community”.

The proposed clubhouse expansion involves the relocation of motorised water safety storage and operations into a new extension towards the northern end of the existing building.

It would also include a new community meeting and events space, which would be offered to community groups.

A new education and training space would improve the capacity of the club to cater for training and education.

“The proposed ASLSC facility expansion will create a community facility with greater capacity to benefit the wider community through improved access to lifesaving, water safety operations, new training and education spaces,” the report said.

Councillors will consider the item tonight before it goes to a council meeting later this month.