The long-awaited opening of the Mount Gambier Bowls Club’s new, undercover green has finally arrived with the $450,000 structure unveiled over the weekend.

Speaking after the official unveiling, club president Ian von Stanke said the new B Green cover would be a “significant” new piece of infrastructure for his club and for Mount Gambier, more broadly. “It’s a beneficial asset to Mount Gambier, because we do not have big venues here,” Mr von Stanke told The SE Voice, adding the facility would be able to host “up to a few thousand” people.

Mr von Stanke clarified that those attendance numbers were for COVID-safe events, with the 1600sqm space hireable and open to community, school, and club events. It comes after the project was officially opened on Saturday by South Australian Minister for Sport Corey Wingard, at an event attended by Member for Mount Gambier Troy Bell and Mount Gambier Mayor Lynette Martin, among others.

This marked the culmination of a three-year, all-local project that utilised contractors entirely from Mount Gambier, Mr von Stanke said. Designed and built by Mount Gambier’s Thomson BILT, construction took two months.

“We had a vision the build would be all local and we succeeded in that,” he said, adding the facility would be future-proof for the next “50 years”. Speaking to The SE Voice after the event, Mr von Stanke said the facility would allow the Mount Gambier Bowls Club to play year-round.

Historically, the club has been forced to shut its doors from May until October each year, due to Mount Gambier’s weather. It also means the club can hold events, regardless of the weather.