The Rushworth Park Trust and Rushworth Field and Game Club have successfully proposed a plan to expand into the vacant tennis clubrooms.
The Rushworth Tennis Club went into recess after complications with volunteers and memberships following the COVID-19 pandemic, and the clubrooms have since been abandoned.
The lack of occupancy in the clubrooms led to vandalism, which saw extensive damage to the toilet facilities and windows.
Rushworth Field and Game club’s conversation officer Graeme Wall said this was a project that would benefit both the club and the community.
“The building is falling into disrepair, and is infected with wasps, iron bark itch with extensive building damage to the windows, toilet facilities and fencing,” Mr Wall said.
Mr Wall said they had already received offers from local tradesmen and community groups to assist in restoring the clubrooms back to their original condition.
The Rushworth Field and Game club has overseen successes in conversation programs with hatching parrots, sugar gliders and ducks, and brolgas breeding in local wetlands.
The clubroom’s restoration will give them a dedicated building to continue their work in conservation, such as constructing bird breeding boxes and hen houses.
Mr Wall said the clubrooms would also allow space to accommodate its members travelling from as far as central Melbourne, as well as an allocated space to hold meetings.
“Currently we do not have an allocated space to meet and discuss – this will give us our own building and somewhere we can meet and discuss conservation,” he said.
“Some people think that all we do is build bird houses, breed birds and shoot them — but that is far from the truth, we’re actually avid in advocating for the wetlands,” he said.
Rushworth Park Trust president Peter Raglus said they were approached by the club in March about possibly occupying the space.
“The park trust were more than happy to provide the space for the field and game club because we know they will use it responsibly, and it will be good for them to have somewhere local to meet,” Mr Raglus said.
“We are really excited to have someone in that clubroom because it’s too good of a property to go to waste.
“The hope is that after restoring the windows and cleaning the place up, that the club will move in by the end of May to the beginning of June.”
Mr Wall said the tennis honour boards in the clubrooms were “still in good condition” and they hoped they could preserve them.
“They will be stored away during repairs and painting, and then refitted to recognise their historic value to the building,” he said.
“If the clubrooms are ever to be used again, at least it will have been fixed up.”