Crumbling cliff puts Londsdale’s bowlers on edge

Jessica Benton
A crumbling cliff threatens to make Point Lonsdale Bowls Club homeless.
Club secretary Alan Mansfield said bowlers were awaiting the outcome of an engineer’s study on the adjacent cliff to find out the fate of their greens.
“We’re right on the cliff face,” he said.
“In the long run if there’s a serious major collapse we’ll be forced out but I don’t see any immediate danger right now.
“As far as the cliff face goes, we’ve been on council and Department of Sustainability and Environment’s backs for about six to eight years. They’ve finally received a grant to investigate the state of the cliff, its future and necessary works and they’re in the process of finding an engineer to do that.”
Mr Mansfield said the club recently renewed a 10-year lease for the Crown land site but failed to secure a 21-year lease because of the threat of further cliff collapses.
“We were about to sign the lease last year and there was a bit of a fall of the adjacent land, so the lease was reduced.”
Mr Mansfield said the club was still moving ahead with major building works regardless of the cliff’s condition.
“We’re extending and renovating the clubhouse as we speak,” he said.
“The first stage is well under way and the second stage depends on funding.
“Our long-term prospect is here and there’s nowhere else in the Borough of Queenscliffe for us to relocate to if the need arises.
“It would also be extremely costly and there’d be no alternative uses for the current land.”
The borough’s draft Point Lonsdale structure plan, which has gone on public exhibition, considers the possibility of relocating the club.
“The land adjacent to the bowling club is collapsing and the club may need to be relocated,” the study concedes
Borough Mayor Bob Merriman said council had received funding from DSE to commission the engineer’s investigation and a report on the area.
“Council is behind the bowls club and we’re also providing financial assistance to the upgrade works but we haven’t as yet got to the stage of looking at what will happen to the area or the club in 50 years’ time.”