By Victoria Stone-Meadows
The Casey council will assist the Cranbourne Public Hall committee of management to acquire grant funding to update the dilapidated building.
A resolution put forward by Councillor Amanda Stapledon at a recent council meeting will see council reaching out to the Department of Environment Land Water and Planning (DELWP) on behalf of the the hall to help secure funding.
Volunteer venue manager for the Cranbourne Public Hall Judy Davis said the hall needed a lot of work to bring it up to scratch.
“The floor badly needs replacing or redoing which will cost about $15,000 to have it stripped back and resurfaced,” she said.
“The toilets are very 1970s; they desperately need an update, all around our windows needs repainting and some need replacing.”
“Even the curtains need replacing and the ceiling is in disrepair, the PA system needs replacing, then you go outside, the car park really needs to be asphalted.”
“How can we expect people to come in their good clothes when the car park is all muddy or dusty?”
The Cranbourne Public Hall committee of management has been doing what they can to stay on top of the maintenance, but Ms Davis said they didn’t have the funds to do the major works required.
“Over the hall is a bit run down and we’ve started painting inside but there is only so much we can do,” she said.
“We really need some help and support.”
Cr Stapledon said she was proud that the Casey council agreed to lend a hand to the hall and hoped they could secure the funding to do the hall justice.
“We are in desperate need of facilities this size for community events such as debutante balls and other things,” she said.
“This is a wonderful hall, a classic public hall with a beautiful stage and beautiful dance floor.”
She said with the council’s support, the hall’s committee of management would have a better chance of securing the funding they needed.
“The committee want it done and while it does not sit on our land, it is on DELWP land, council wants to everything they can to help,” she said.
“We will be looking towards DELWP and the landfill levy that is sitting there to see if we can access some of that to restore the hall to its former glory.”
