Bowling clubs release equity in land
The merging of bowling clubs around the country has opened opportunities for property development on vacated sites as well providing money for new club facilities.
In Lower Hutt, the Naenae and Park Avenue bowling clubs have merged with the Naenae RSA and Park Avenue Petanque Club and moved to a new $6.8 million clubhouse, vacating land near Hutt Hospital at Mitchell Park on Witako St which will be rezoned for medical and commercial development.
In Auckland, the ex-Hillsboro Bowls Club site at 16 Hillsborough Rd is on the market for about $8m and likely to be developed for housing.
The Onehunga and Hillsboro clubs have merged to become the Royal Oak Club which will use the proceeds of the sale from the Hillsborough site for new facilities in Selwyn St, Onehunga.
Marketing agent for the Hillsborough property, Barry Greer of Barfoots, said he had received inquiries from two church groups and from individuals looking to build and subdivide.
The number of people playing bowls has fallen since the 1990s, reflected in the number of clubs reducing by half since the late 1990s.
Bowls NZ chief executive Mark Cameron said many of them still own significant blocks of land.
In 2014 the Remuera Rawhiti Bowling Club sold its greens in 14 Rangitoto Ave to retirement village developer BeGroup which has embarked on construction, expected to be completed later this year.
‘‘There are 511 clubs in New Zealand. That’s significant, and things will invariably change over the next few years.
‘‘I know of about a dozen discussions going on between clubs around the country.’’
Cameron said when clubs merged and built new modern facilities, other clubs also had to step up to keep members.
‘‘These discussions by clubs recognise the membership model is different now and clubs need to perform like a small business to survive rather than rely completely on volunteers.
‘‘It’s a business, which means paid management and staff with decent facilities.’’
Not all land sold has been developed. A Newmarket site that Carlton Cornwall Bowling Club sold in 2009 went to a Chinese investor and it remains derelict.
The club used the proceeds of the sale to develop new facilities at 126 Market Rd leased from Cornwall Park Trust.
Bowls NZ’s Cameron said there were a number of examples of how clubs had moved to a more professional footing by creating club hubs and the trend was likely to accelerate. Few clubs have posted annual surplus funds.
Seventeen of the Auckland clubs own their own properties, and bowls officials are encouraging them to work together through a Club Development Agreement to consider ways they can manage their assets – including mergers and property sales.
Cameron said a good example of the way hubs were being developed was the Pukeko Bowling Club in Parklands in east Christchurch.
It was formerly the Parklands Bowling Club whose facilities were badly damaged by the 2011 earthquakes, with liquefaction on the greens, and the pavilion building damaged beyond repair.
The greens have been repaired and the club reinvented itself by welcoming players from the South Brighton and Linwood bowling clubs, which were both left without premises after the earthquakes.
Then it struck a joint venture with Parklands Rugby Football Club, also disrupted by the earthquakes, to develop new shared clubrooms.