The Chirnside Park Veterans teams are celebrating the completion of Kimberley Reserve pavilion in what they say will help encourage more girls to play games.
Yarra Ranges Council finished construction on the new sporting facility at Kimberley Reserve in February, with the $4.7 million pavilion replacing the original building with a new, multi-use pavilion for club members, players, and wider community.
The new pavilion features a single-storey sporting pavilion, including a large community room, large meeting room, kitchen and drinks serving areas, four change rooms, unisex umpires’ rooms, storerooms for each sporting club and unisex toilet facilities for visitors.
Chirnside Park Women’s Veterans Captain, Gabrielle Dosser said the new space has made it more welcoming for new players, regardless of age or gender.
“The girls couldn’t be happier that we now have somewhere to change and our own toilets and showers which is a far cry from the old concrete bunker we used to have,” Gabrielle said.
“We now have privacy and our own secure space to change, and it elevates not only our club, but for the benefit of the whole community it gives Kimberley reserve a facility that is there and ready to use for women and people of all sexes and ages.”
On Thursday nights after training, the women’s veteran team joins the senior men’s teams for dinner at the pavilion and Dosser emphasized that community sport goes beyond physically activitiy.
“It’s definitely become much more than just a place to go just for football—it’s where we hang out, have a good time, and socialise, and the pavilion has even been opened up on Fridays for people to come, meet and chat. It’s becoming a home for so many people in the sporting community and outside of it,” said Gabrielle.
On 1 July The Chirnside Park Veterans teams will be having a veterans double header with South Belgrave Football Club with the pavilion offering a view over both ovals while teams play at the same time.
“It’s the first time in the history of the Eastern Football Netball League that a Women’s Veterans Team and Men’s Veteran’s Team from the same club has been able to go head-to-head and this is the first time we’ve had an opportunity to do something like this,” she said.
Chirnside Councillor, Richard Higgins, said that the pavilion will improve comfort for current users, as well as opening the doors to other local community groups who are able to hire out the venue for functions and meetings.
“This spectacular new building is something the Panthers and Chirnside community as a whole can be really proud of.”
“I’m so pleased to see the separate changerooms for male and female, as we see more aspiring young and older players showing their passion for sport.”
The pavilion has been funded with $1.8 million from the State Government’s Growing Suburbs Fund, with Council contributing a further $2.8 million.
