Lismore Workers Club to reopen after two-and-a-half-year flood recovery

THE doors of the Lismore Workers Club in Keen Street are set to reopen on Monday, September 23, after flooding severely damaged the venue.

The club’s president Ian Harmon said it was great to finally be reopening the doors to the public two-and-a-half years after the disaster.

The general manager Stephen Bortolin said workers were busy putting the finishing touches on the refurbishment before opening day.

“We’re all working hard this week to get it over the line,” Mr Bortolin said. “People are very excited.”

Built at one of the lowest points in the CBD, Mr Bortolin said the club was susceptible to flooding. But nothing came close to the flood level in February 2022.

The board of directors moved the club’s facilities to the first floor to limit future flood damage.

“The ground floor has been closed off. The facilities down on the ground floor we put into the top now. That’s basically the whole of the club now,” Mr Bortolin said.

This has reduced the club’s footprint by a third, losing some of the function rooms.

But food and entertainment remain at the core of its operations.

“There’s a cafe, a pizzeria with pasta and noodle bar, and a cook-to-order area,” Mr Bortolin said.

The auditorium has been restored, and the club is already advertising tickets for shows in November – including Boney M, Marina Prior, The Italian Tenors, and The Fab Four.

It is also available for school and corporate events.

The Workers Club Group has three clubs and a motel in the region – the Lismore Workers Golf Club and The Workers Sports Club in Oliver Avenue Goonellabah. It employs about 95 people and 50 of those will work at the Keen Street venue.

The Lismore & District Workers Club was established by the Richmond-Tweed Trades & Labour Council on June 24, 1954.

The original venue was a weatherboard cottage about two doors from the present site of the Cool Rocks Cellar, but it has moved location and undergone numerous renovations as membership grew.

The latest renovation they hope will see that membership continues to grow.