At the 16 February 2015 Council meeting, consent was granted to a 21-year lease. The lease commenced on the 1 March 2015 and expires in February 2036 if all renewal options are taken up. This was an outcome of community engagement held between the 25 September and 17 October 2014.

During the community engagement on the lease, concerns were raised that the building would be used as a shed for storage purposes only, with no positive community benefit for the public. Based on this feedback, a public deck was included within the design and construct conditions of the lease. To provide public assurance that the development would operate as a community facility, the Goolwa Rowing Club was required to stage the development as below:

• Stage 1 was to include the public decking area within their Development Application (DA). The intent behind the decking was to merge it with the existing jetty to provide an expanse of open, public area for unrestricted community use, with a focus on passive water sport activities. Passive water activities from the decking and jetty could include canoeing, kayaking, wind surfing, model boats and fishing.
• Stage 2 - required completion of the building, with the inclusion of club meeting rooms and associated services including a kitchenette.

At the 5 September 2016 Council Meeting, Council granted landowners consent to the design for the build of a boathouse, decking, meeting rooms and services, subject to development approval of DA 455/542/16. The DA lapsed.

Over time, and on review of that DA, the Club has simplified and modernised their design and considered the public deck. The Goolwa Rowing Club letter, as attached to this community engagement, provides information on the history of the Club and why a deck would not meet the Club’s river access needs.

Landowners consent to the build of a Clubhouse facility on the land does not need to go to community engagement, as the granting of the lease in 2015 was for the purpose of the build of a Goolwa Rowing Club facility and the current proposal meets that intent. However, at the time that the lease was granted, the lease required a public deck to be included within any future build. As the current proposed Clubhouse facility no longer includes a public deck, community feedback is sought to assist the Council in its decision making on the provision of landowners consent.

The Development Application (DA) is currently being assessed by Council’s planning team in accordance with the requirements of the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016 (PDI Act). As part of the assessment, the DA was subject to statutory public notification. The DA was notified from 13 February 2026 to 05 March 2026, which included written notification to all property owners within 60 metres of the land parcel and a sign placed on the land (at the road frontage).

During the public notification period, 29 representations were lodged, with 11 representors in support of the development, four (4) representations supporting the development with concerns and 14 representors opposed to the development. Concerns expressed within the opposing representations were generally regarding inappropriate foreshore siting, environmental and visual impacts, amenity impacts, traffic and parking, public versus private benefit, precedent and alternative sites. As part of the PDI Act assessment process, submissions are received and recorded with submitters advised when the application is scheduled to be considered by the FRAP including an opportunity to request to be heard by the FRAP should they wish to do so. The DA is currently on hold, pending the Council’s decision in providing landowner's consent. If landowners consent to the Clubhouse facility is not achieved, the DA will not proceed in its current form to FRAP.

This community engagement is to seek broad community feedback on the proposed Clubhouse facility, noting that it no longer includes a public deck as originally anticipated. This is a Council process that provides widespread opportunity for community feedback.

This engagement is not community engagement on the Development Application, as that is dealt with via public notification as part of the statutory assessment process under the PDI Act, and must be undertaken in accordance with prescribed legislative requirements. The public notification was held in accordance with the requirements of the PDI Act, which included written notification to all property owners within 60 metres of the land parcel and a sign placed on the land (at the road frontage). This was a targeted notification process of the Development Application under a statutory assessment obligation, rather than consultation across a broad sector of the community on a Clubroom facility which no longer includes a public deck, as previously required under the terms and conditions of the lease.