Media response - community-owned sports facility funding

Published on 19 September 2025

Enquiry - The Advertiser

Can council provide a breakdown for how much funding it has provided to Willunga Recreation Park, Cherry Gardens Ironbank Recreation Ground, McLaren Vale Sporting Complex, McLaren Vale Bowling Club and Willunga Bowling Club over the past five years? 

The submission from Willunga Recreation Park states that council has allocated $5.7 million for upgrades to recreation and sports facilities over the next five years but none of this funding is going to the aforementioned community facilities. 

• Why are these sporting facilities missing out? 
• Does council believe the current funding arrangement for the aforementioned community owned sporting facilities is fair? 
• Will council meet the funding requests outlined in the petition and submission?
• I've been speaking to the clubs and recreation grounds behind the petition and I'm told one of the risks they face is that they may no longer be able to afford to run their facilities in the future and have to relinquish the land to council. Could council provide figures for how many community-owned facilities have been transferred to council ownership since Onkaparinga Council formed in 1997? 
• What was the last community-owned facility that was transferred to council ownership? When did the transfer take place and how much does it cost council per year to run it? 
• how many community-owned sporting clubs and facilities remain today in Onkaparinga?
• Some clubs if they can't keep up with costs they'll have to relinquish that community owned land to council. 
• Has council had any discussions with Willunga Recreation Ground, McLaren Vale Sporting Complex, McLaren Vale Bowling Club or Willunga Bowling Club about eventually taking ownership of those facilities? Would council be interested or able to do so? 

Response

The City of Onkaparinga has 123 council-owned sport and active recreation buildings and a diverse range of community sport and recreation assets including 203 hard courts (tennis, netball and basketball keyways) and 53 playing fields (turfed ovals, pitches and bowling greens). We’re also home to 3 multi-use sports facilities and, combined, these locations provide homes for more than 200 sport and active recreation clubs.

These facilities, clubs and their passionate volunteers play incredibly important roles in providing opportunities for the community to connect and live active, healthy and fulfilling lives, which is why we’ve invested approximately $67 million over the past 5 years into sport and active recreation-related projects (this includes state and federal government funding contributions).

On top of project funding, we provide a range of other support for community-owned multi-use sports facilities including governance and operational support, access to council grants and subsided fee maintenance support for sportsgrounds and hardcourts.

We know the community wants funding models for council and community-owned sporting facilities that are equitable and that reflect the role and value of sporting clubs in our community. We’re in regular dialogue with the management of these facilities to hear their views on how we can achieve this, and our responsibility is to balance the various needs and aspirations of the community in a financially sustainable way.

Tonight’s petition is another piece of that dialogue, and we now look forward to preparing a report to Council in December that addresses the issues raised, analyses current support levels, and identifies any areas for improvement.

To our knowledge, there are no facilities that have been transferred from community ownership to council ownership since 1997.

There are currently 3 community-owned multi-use sporting facilities and 2 community-owned lawn bowling clubs in Onkaparinga – Willunga Recreation Park, Cherry Gardens Ironbank Recreation Grounds, McLaren Vale Sporting Complex, Willunga Bowling Club and McLaren Vale Bowling Club.

We haven’t entered into formal discussions with these sporting clubs regarding taking ownership of their facilities, and any consideration of ownership would require a due diligence process to consider financial matters, governance arrangements and alignment with community needs.

Our approach is to work with these sporting clubs, state sporting organisations and the state government through the Office for Recreation Sport and Racing (ORSR) to ensure their ongoing sustainability through governance and operations support, maintenance and infrastructure improvements, as well as access to grants and subsidy programs.

We recognise that rising operational costs, particularly electricity and utilities, are placing increasing pressure on local sporting clubs. Through regular engagement with clubs, we aim to understand these challenges and explore ways we can support them to maintain sustainable and well-managed facilities.

We provide ongoing support in the areas of governance and operations for both council-owned and community-owned sport and recreation facilities. This includes inviting all multi-use sporting facilities to participate in an annual health check and regular check-ins designed to strengthen governance and operational practices. 

The annual health check process helps identify site-specific needs and opportunities and where support may be needed, such as strategic planning or financial management.

ENDS