Mount Gambier’s City Band Hall has undergone upgrading thanks to a much-needed community grant.

The Pick Avenue building was re-roofed after receiving assistance from the Stand Like Stone Foundation, which provided a grant to complete the project.

Band president Allen Woodham OAM said the building was a city icon with its modern colourful murals and was originally constructed in 1965.

“The hall has been completely upgraded and renovated inside in recent years however, the roof remained as the original placement,” he said.

“Last winter created some critical situations as rain breached several areas including the kitchen and music library causing major concerns to those using the facility.

“This resulted in several expensive repairs being undertaken however the management committee were strongly advised the roof urgently needed to be replaced.”

Mr Woodham said with numerous music groups utilising the facility each week it was considered imperative by the management committee that action be taken urgently to remedy the situation before winter rains again arrived to exacerbate the problems.

“As is the case with any community group the costs involved were difficult to consider, particularly after the lean years COVID-19 brought upon us all, so an application was made to Stand Like Stone for some assistance to add to the reserve funds the band needed to allocate to the project,” he said.

“We can now be assured the building will be secure and remain a serviceable and welcoming environment for decades into the future with the completion of this project.

“The management committee now needs to recover financially from this expensive exercise so will be planning to run some activities in the near future to restore some of the funds needed to ensure everyone can function confidently into the future.

“As an iconic part of the South East community the band, which has existed since 1895, is working to ensure it is functioning in every respect to serve its wider community well into the distant future.”