Years of planning and advocacy have paid off for Success Netball Association (SNA) which has celebrated a major milestone with the completion of new floodlighting and resurfaced courts.
In a $1.05m project, the club’s HQ at Success Regional Sporting and Community Facility now has eight lighting towers capable of illuminating the 20 resurfaced courts, allowing for more night training and games during the winter and spring netball seasons.
The $700,000 lighting upgrade was made possible with support from the WA Government, comprising $178,000 through the Club Light Nights Program and a $100,000 election commitment.
The City of Cockburn provided the remaining $422,000 for the lighting project and also funded the $350,000 court resurfacing, providing a surface with a safer, brighter grip for players.
City of Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett said the City was proud to be involved in the project and to declare it open, along with Cockburn MLA David Scaife, at a special sunset ceremony on Sunday 19 April.
“The City has provided more than $770,000 to this $1.05m project, helping provide essential lighting and renewed playing courts in an outcome that not only benefits local netballers, but the entire Success community.
“The project has provided significant improvements to the City’s Success Regional Sporting and Community Facility, helping to benefit about 1,500 players involved in the SNA’s spring and winter netball seasons,” Mayor Howlett said.
“Previously only eight of the facility’s 20 courts were floodlit to training standard, which was a concern for the association and parents of players.
“The 25m tall lighting towers feature 100 and 200 Lux luminaires and five public address speakers.
“The additional lighting will support growth of association membership, allowing more teams to train in the evening and providing the option to host regular night games or host large tournaments.
“The court resurfacing project funded by the City has delivered a durable, high-performance surface designed for regular community use.
“The previous court surface had reached the end of its useful life and the new surface provides improved grip and durability, ensuring a safer playing surface, supporting the association for many years to come.”
Comments attributed to Mr David Scaife MLA, Member for Cockburn:
“These new lights will mean more time on court for local clubs and players,” Mr Scaife said.
“Backed by a $100,000 election commitment I made and a $178,000 Club Night Lights grant from the Cook Government, it's great to see them switched on.
“It's a big moment for Success Netball Association after years of advocacy.”
Comments attributed to Success Netball Association President Charlene Smith:
“Success Netball Association is absolutely delighted to see this long-awaited project come to life after more than seven years of dedicated advocacy,” Ms Smith said.
“With over 1,500 members, the new lighting and upgraded courts represent a transformative step forward for our association, significantly enhancing the player experience and enabling extended afternoon and evening training, as well as greater access across all 20 lit courts.
“These exciting improvements will have an immediate and meaningful impact on our upcoming winter season, while also opening the door to new opportunities such as night competitions and hosting larger tournaments. We are incredibly grateful to the WA Government and the City of Cockburn.”
This project is part of the WA Government’s PlayOn WA, an exciting initiative to deliver 2,030 community infrastructure items across WA by 2030.
Caption: L-r City of Cockburn Cr Carol Zhang, City of Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett, Cockburn MLA David Scaife, City of Cockburn Cr Tarun Dewan, City of Cockburn Director Infrastructure Services Anton Lees and City of Cockburn Cr Hilda Srhoy cheer on Success Netball Association President Charlene Smith as she shoots for goal.