Three years after the sale of its former clubhouse on Condamine Street, and an idea that’s been 20 years in the making, Warringah Golf Club is finally ready to break ground and build their new clubhouse at Northern Beaches Council’s new Warringah Recreation Centre (WRC).
WRC is a new multi-sport facility on the corner of Pittwater and Kentwell Road in North Manly. Once completed, it will include squash courts, tennis courts and now a golf clubhouse.
“Our former clubhouse, on Condamine Street, didn’t serve our golf members,” Warringah Golf Club President, Scott Campbell told Manly Observer.
“It was on the opposite side of the street to the golf course, and it wasn’t trading well.”
Warringah Golf Club sold the former clubhouse in 2021, which is set to become a childcare centre, with proceeds from the sale funding the $8 million new club house.
The new clubhouse, which will be next to the front nine holes of the golf course, will offer dining facilities and event spaces, a Pro Shop and office administration spaces. Construction with Prime Projects will begin in July 2025 and is expected to be completed within a year.
“This is an important step forward in positioning Warringah Golf Club for continued success in the years ahead,” Mr Campbell said.
“In addition to the upgraded facilities, the new clubhouse will feature sustainability initiatives, including energy-efficient systems, solar power and solar water heating systems, water conservation measures, and eco-friendly materials.”
It’s been an uphill battle
With their former clubhouse falling apart around them, golf membership soaring after COVID-19 restrictions and a battle to preserve the full 18-hole golf course (in 2019 there was a bid to reduce it to 9-holes), Warringah Golf Club tried several avenues to find a home for a new clubhouse. At one point, Mr Campbell said they were looking to move in with North Manly Bowling Club.
He credits Northern Beaches Council for supporting them in coming up with a long-term solution by authorising a 20-year lease to Warringah Golf Club for the full 18-holes in 2020 and securing them a spot at WRC.
“It has been a long journey, but a 20-year lease on the full 18-holes plus a 20-year lease for the clubhouse on the Warringah Recreation Centre site secures our future,” Mr Campbell said.
In 2023, Warringah Golf Club lodged the DA for their new clubhouse which has also come against obstacles (that DA has recently been approved by the Sydney North Planning Panel).
“It’s been a difficult process with Sydney North Planning Panel,” Mr Campbell told us.
First, the WRC wasn’t zoned to have a registered club (which can apply for a club licence under the Liquor Act 2007). After much back and forth during the DA process, Council confirmed the re-zoning has been completed and Warringah Golf Club can apply for the use of the building as a registered club.
“It means we can apply for the restaurant and event spaces to serve alcohol to members and the community who want to use the space for functions which we need to generate income for the Club,” Mr Campbell explained.
“There won’t be any gaming machines, but the entire process has been challenging with lots of red tape and costing us money.”
Another concern has been parking.
Initially, there was going to be only one car park (the eastern car park) funded and built by Council to service the golf club, squash and tennis courts which, per the diagram, will have around 60 spaces.
“We offered to give up some of our practice area for Council to be able to put up another shared car parking space,” Mr Campbell explained.
The western car park, which has been planned and approved but Council has not yet been able to secure funding for, will add another 70 car parking spaces for the Centre.
Council have confirmed early civil and stormwater works are currently being undertaken with the construction of the eastern car park expected to commence mid-2025. Construction on the squash courts will commence late 2025 and construction on the tennis courts will commence in early 2026, all funded by Council.
“We are one of the biggest golf courses in Australia in terms of rounds of golf, and we know we can’t survive on golf alone; we need the community to want to use our facilities,” Mr Campbell added.
“So, we are excited to finally being able to move forward and deliver a quality, kid-friendly and affordable clubhouse to our members and the broader community.”
What is the Warringah Recreation Centre?
The Warringah Recreation Centre is a Council and State Government funded project to bring five new tennis courts, three indoor squash courts with spectator seating and potentially further facilities on the corner of Pittwater Road and Kentwell Road in North Manly.
What’s the Manly Warringah Gymnastics Centre then?
The Manly Warringah Gymnastics Centre is a multi-million dollar facility, partly federally funded, which will be developed across the other side of Kentwell Road. You can learn more about the original plans for that here.
