“We won’t go quietly”: Whitehorse Council scraps demolition plans for 57-year-old indoor sports hall

A group of local elderly table tennis players heaved a sigh of relief earlier this week, as Whitehorse Council took the proposed demolition of Mahoney’s Reserve recreational hall in Forest Hill off the table at the 11th hour.

❓What happened: During Whitehorse Council’s meeting on Monday December 8, councillor Andrew Davenport moved an alternative motion essentially saving the recreational hall where table tennis currently takes place.

• The update to the draft Master Plan included a new preferred option: building a new pavilion for cricket and soccer facilities but keeping the hall untouched until an alternative site can be created.

• The motion also reaffirmed council’s commitment towards looking at future options for table tennis facilities, as well as advocating to the state government for funding for the construction of a new regional table tennis facility.

• The decision, which was unanimously supported by all councillors, went against the officers’ initial recommendation, which proposed the demolition of the recreational hall to make way for a new cricket and soccer pavilion.

🏓 🏏 ⚽️ Indoor vs outdoor sports: The Whitehorse Activities Club co-ordinates about 327 players across 13 table tennis, badminton and indoor bowls groups within the existing hall, which is almost at full capacity.

• WAC table tennis leader Bruce Haines told the Eastern Melburnian the decision was a “big win” and thanked all locals who attended and spoke to the need for table tennis facilities to be retained.

• 🗣️ “Clearly, there is still a long way to go, but I think we have put council on notice that we won’t go quietly,” said Haines. “We have won a reprieve on the demolition of our hall that should last until we have another better facility to go to.”

🛑 Sudden shift: Councillor Davenport said his alternative motion “doesn’t throw out the baby with the bathwater” by aiming to appease both the indoor and outdoor sporting groups. 

• 🗣️ “There are two emerging groups that have competing needs,” said Davenport.

⏭️What’s next? The council will soon release the draft plan for the second round of public consultation, with a final master plan then coming before council for final approval next year.