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Manly Sailing Club has applied to Council for permission to extend its facility on the Manly beachfront.
An application for landowner permission, lodged last month states that the club proposes to extend the deck on the northern/beach side by five metres and enclose it underneath for storage. It also proposes to extend the rear/southern side by six metres, again allowing for more storage.
The club also wants to revisit an earlier proposal to fence off its leased area on the eastern side.
Neighbours opposed to the proposal say that it will have a major impact on public access to, and use of the reserve.
In addition, the sailing club and Manly Bowling Club opposite may soon be sharing space.
Council’s community leases manager Frances Ting says Council staff met sailing club representatives in May to discuss a proposed extension of the club’s leased area. She says the club indicated it had seen phenomenal growth and is struggling for storage space. It was decided that the solution would be to utilise some of the land currently leased to the Manly Bowling Club.
Sailing club vice commodore, Harold Bennett says that the bowling club has some land that is surplus to requirements and at this stage seems happy with the idea of helping its neighbour.
He says that the sailing club would need to take up quite a lot of that space for a substantial storage facility for its powerboats and sailing gear.
In a meeting last month facilitated by Council staff, both clubs voiced their commitment in principle to working together and developing the storage facility.
A report about the required changes to the leases will go before the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board’s meeting this month.
Manly Bowling Club secretary Jenny Wilson says at this stage the club has no comment to make.
