Bayside’s Beaumaris Reserve and Donald MacDonald Pavilions officially opened

Bayside’s Beaumaris Reserve Sports Pavilion and Donald MacDonald Pavilion have both recently been officially opened with plaque unveiling ceremonies attended by tenant clubs and the wider Bayside sporting community.

The upgraded $3.7 million Beaumaris Reserve Sports Pavilion was designed by Cohen Leigh Architects and constructed by FIMMA Constructions and is an environmentally conscious building that reflects the changing needs of the resident soccer and cricket clubs and will support players of all genders and abilities.

The $3.2 million redevelopment of the pavilion at Donald MacDonald Reserve now provides new modern and accessible facilities making the space more welcoming for new players regardless of age, ability, or gender and provide much-needed accessible facilities for local sporting clubs as well as the broader community.

While the pavilions have already been in use, celebrations marked the official opening of these two projects and 15 pavilions completed as part of a $52 million investment to improve all 27 sporting pavilions in Bayside by 2025.

Bayside Mayor Alex del Porto said the opening of both pavilions is an important community milestone for Bayside’s sporting community.

“Sporting pavilions become important meeting places and landmarks of Bayside and I’m glad the clubs at both Beaumaris Reserve Sports Pavilion and Donald MacDonald Pavilion now have access to modern, upgraded facilities.”

Beaumaris Reserve Sports Pavilion was completed in just under 16 months, with works having begun in  March 2021 and completed by June 2022.

Built in 1968 the original pavilion served the community for 44 years, however it was no longer meeting the needs of the community.

The pavilion is designed as a SMART building responding to Bayside’s declaration of a climate emergency and features:

• Solar panels;

• North facing windows to maximise use of natural light for heating during the winter months;

• Electric appliances and water heating systems to reduce reliance on natural gas;

• Sensor lighting and water tanks;

• Timers on heating systems; and

• Activation lighting – using sensors to activate services such as lighting and ventilation in use while the remainder of the building lies dormant to reduce cost and improve building lifecycle.

Other design features include realigned car parking within the reserve to ensure no loss of spaces, an accessible car park at the pavilion entry, and unsealed paths to connect all buildings within the heritage precinct.

The cleverly designed pavilion ensures maximum use of Council’s assets, through inclusion of a community kitchenette to support casual daytime use, during non-sporting hours.

To ensure the reserve maintains its natural leafy environment, native landscaping of the site has been included as part of the pavilion renewal project including the planting of an additional ten indigenous trees that will reach 18 metres tall by 10 metres wide once fully grown. 

At the entry of the pavilion, you are greeted by a beautiful indigenous mural created by highly acclaimed indigenous artist Stan Yarramunua, a Yorta Yorta man from the Barmah Forest region.

The pavilion is now also fully compliant with the Disability Discrimination Act.

Between March 2021 and March 2022, the pavilion at Donald MacDonald Reserve was transformed to provide new modern and accessible facilities.

New gender inclusive change rooms and umpire facilities will help sporting clubs grow their membership and support increased participation in sport.

The redevelopment features include a public toilet, kiosk, increased storage facilities and a community space for broader community use.

The design includes sustainability features such as solar panels on the roof, water-heating systems, and electrical appliances to reduce reliance on natural gas, water tanks and sensor lighting throughout the building.

The new pavilion complements the recently completed reconstruction of the sportsground at Donald MacDonald Reserve. The sportsground is a popular park for both organised sport and as a designated dog off-leash area. The upgrades to the playing surface were undertaken to address the high level of shared use at the site.

Images courtesy Bayside City Council