Club president Amy Wilson-White says BNZ’s crucially come to the party with a decent-sized loan to complete the project.
Quantity surveyors originally estimated the project — including showers and toilets and upstairs meeting room, kitchen and viewing balcony — at $1,052,000.
With Southern Lakes ITM providing materials at cost, that figure was recalibrated at $750,000 to $800,000.
However, the cost blew out again to $1m with unforeseen costs, such as for an accessible car park and ramp, and the loss of counted-on community funding.
BNZ has been "fantastic and super-supportive", Wilson-White says, "like it’s not something a bank would typically fund".
"They know it’s going to be a really good asset for the community, and they can see the long-term value in it."
She says they’re still fundraising as ideally they won’t need to draw down the whole loan.
Without that support, the club had faced mothballing the project till they’d raised enough money, "but that impacts a rowing season, for sure".
They’d also received bookings from community groups for the meeting space — "they wanted to use it, so to do it justice we had to finish it".
The project also includes an indoor training facility rowers can use if the weather cuts up, "and we’re hoping our neighbours will come in and use it".
Wilson-White adds they’re indebted to the help they’ve received from tradies, in particular.
"We’ve only got this far because so many people have volunteered their skills and their time and their money."
