Reserve gets female-friendly makeover

THE changing rooms at the Doug Dean Reserve in Delacombe have been completely overhauled to make them female-friendly in a move described as “a vital addition” to the facility.

City of Ballarat mayor Cr Tracey Hargreaves made the comment during a tour of the new-look changing rooms with cricket and rugby club officials last week.

Cr Hargreaves said the upgrades were about providing high-quality facilities to meet the needs of the rapidly-growing western suburbs.

“We are extremely proud to deliver the complete overhaul of Doug Dean Reserve in recent years and the new changerooms are a vital addition to the facility,” she said.

“Providing female-friendly changerooms is an integral step towards increasing participation in sport, while the overhaul of the entire facility will increase social connections and give the clubs an enormous boost.”

Cr Hargreaves was joined on the inspection visit by VRI Delacombe Cricket Club president Tom Nicholls and Ballarat Highlanders Rugby Union Club president Garry Dixon.

The $767,891 project, fully funded by the City, includes two new changing rooms with accessible showers and toilets, as well as refurbishments of umpire facilities, social space, the first aid room, storeroom and kiosk.

The new changing rooms will be suitable for both cricket and rugby and will be used throughout the year.

The cricket club and the rugby club are both based at the reserve.

The latest upgrade follows a string of improvements at the multi-use sporting facility, with $106,099 spent on new outdoor gym equipment (including a $72,000 State Government contribution) in 2023.

New cricket nets were installed in 2022 in a $412,385 project, which included $100,000 from the State Government, and flood lights worth $333,409 were erected in 2018.

The State Government contributed $75,000 to that improvement.

The City of Ballarat’s Recreation Infrastructure Plan has also identified a potential future upgrade of the reserve’s playing surface.

Cr Hargreaves said the facilities were dilapidated and outdated before the upgrade, making attracting new players difficult for the sporting clubs.