DEVELOPMENT UPDATE:

The Sharks continue to push forward on plans to return to PointsBet Stadium for the 2022 NRL season, despite Covid-19 impacting the expected completion date of the Woolooware Bay Town Centre and Leagues Club refurbishment.

Excitement surrounds the fact that activity and construction will begin on Stage 4 of the Woolooware Bay Town Centre in the coming weeks in the face of unavoidable and understandable challenges presented by the global pandemic.

Though the completion is now expected in 2023, this has done little to dampen the Sharks’ enthusiasm to be hosting members and fans at our spiritual home in 2022.

“While Kogarah’s Jubilee Oval has been a comfortable home away from home this season and will be again in 2021 when we can hopefully accommodate full capacity crowds, the message is loud and clear that our members want to see our team back playing at PointsBet Stadium,” Sharks CEO Dino Mezzatesta said.

“There will be challenges around the staging of games, but we will be working with the developer towards making the ground compliant and accessible to our members and fans for 2022 despite the fact construction will be on going.”

The later completion of Woolooware Bay Town Centre means that reopening of the Sharks Leagues Club will also push back to 2023.

However after a successful transition to Sharks at Kareela, Mezzatesta is confident the club has a facility which will continue to accommodate members now, as well as when the state-of-the-art refurbished club opens its doors at Woolooware.

“We would have liked to reopen the new Leagues Club as originally scheduled, however as explained by the developers, COVID has impacted construction timelines and there is little either of us have been able to do about that,” he said.

“The new Leagues Club will be worth the wait when it opens in 2023 but in the interim Sharks at Kareela is a fantastic facility, works are continuing to improve it even further and it is a convenient base for us at present and will continue to be a great second home in the Shire once we are in our new club in Woolooware.”

Matt Crews, Development Director for Woolooware Bay Town Centre was excited to announce construction will be up and running in the coming weeks.

“It will be great to see the hoarding go up soon, signalling the start of construction of the final stage of the project, which will deliver a brilliant new Sharks Leagues Club, the Bay Central Shopping Centre and the final apartments in the development, in 2023,” Crews said.

“It’s also been very encouraging that despite the extraordinary events our community has experienced since the end of 2019, with impacts from bushfire, flood, drought and now Covid-19, business is happening, and there has been strong momentum maintained at Woolooware Bay,” he added.

The Woolooware Bay project has hit some milestones over the past 12 months and most recently with the latest residents now moving into Stage 3 apartments – the final apartments to be delivered as part of the Town Centre’s western precinct.

The roadworks on Captain Cook Drive, a massive $25 million-dollar project, are now complete, with the developers working closely with the adjacent Woolooware High School to deliver a new outdoor Amphitheatre, electronic sign and much needed school fencing.

There has also been considerable interest in the commercial suites available in the Town Centre and when it comes to the Bay Central shopping precinct, anchor stores of Woolworths, Dan Murphy’s and ALDI, a number of restaurant and food offerings, a childcare operator and gym, have made commitments with more exciting announcements to come.

Apartment sales in Stage 4 are also tracking steadily, agents reporting strong interest from local downsizers and first homebuyers.

For any enquires in relation to apartment sales or commercial offerings, go to the website at www.wooloowarebay.com.au, call their team on 1800 088 800 or visit the display suite at 71 Cronulla Street, Cronulla.

In the meantime, Sharks membership and commercial departments encourage fans to attend one of the three remaining NRL games at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium in 2020 as a preview of what is to come in 2021, before our anticipated return to PointsBet Stadium in 2022.