Piggabeen Sports Complex will undergo a significant upgrade thanks to a $300,000 NSW Government grant, which will include upgrading facilities to support female rugby league players.
Member for Tweed Geoff Provest said the upgrade would include new change rooms, a gymnasium, storerooms and accessible toilets
“Women’s rugby league continues to grow in popularity across the region, so we need to cater to this increase in demand,” Mr Provest said.
“What we will see from this project is a regional sport facility for the Tweed and northern NSW communities with a focus on women’s, junior and indigenous participation.
“The project will open opportunities to host community sporting events and enable the complex to become a hub for increased participation across rugby league and softball.”
Minister for Racing Paul Toole said the project was funded through the club grants Category 3 Infrastructure Grants program.
“More than $50 million in funding is being provided during this current term of government for projects across sport and recreation, emergency preparedness, and arts and culture,” Mr Toole said.
“These grants are funded by a contribution from the state’s registered clubs to reinvest profits from gaming machines back into community projects.”
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New funding ranges have encouraged more diverse projects, with a streamlined application process that cuts red tape and allows for faster assessment.
The Tweed Heads Seagulls welcomed the announcement.
“This money is so important to our club,” Seagulls Chairman Ian Paton said.
“We recently applied for NSW Government funding to improve the facilities at Piggabeen.
“We want to work with Tweed Shire Council and the State Government to turn it into a high performance regional community sports facility.
“It will enable us to build a multipurpose facility at Piggabeen Sports Complex which will include women’s change rooms to allow us to introduce a women’s rugby league program in 2019.
“In addition, there will be a gymnasium for improved strength and conditioning for our players, Seagulls Juniors and other sporting codes and public toilets,” Mr Paton said.
Seagulls CEO Paul Stephenson said it was an important development for the broader community.
“We want to be the club in Tweed that the community barrack for and aspire to play for; and to do that, we need high-quality strength and conditioning facilities so our players train and play to their full potential,” Mr Stephenson said.
“Our club’s purpose it to create sustainable pathways and opportunities for rugby league players to play at the highest level of rugby league possible and the support of Geoff and the NSW Government is integral to us achieving this.”
*This story also features a media release from Geoff Provest MP (Member for Tweed)
