Additional funding to complete Council’s refurbishment of Cement Mills Hall

An additional $10,000 in external funding will complement a suite of recently completed refurbishments at Cement Mills Hall by Goondiwindi Regional Council.

During his visit to Inglewood today, Mayor of the Goondiwindi region the Honourable Cr Lawrence Springborg AM said Council had recently completed $50,000 of upgrades and maintenance at the hall.

“Our community halls play an often-underestimated yet central role in our community,” Cr Springborg said. “Especially in smaller rural localities such as Cement Mills, where they serve as an important meeting place for community gatherings and events,” he said.

Council’s extensive recent refurbishment works at the hall include replacing the entire roof of the building. The fascia and front and rear steps were also replaced, as well as some windows and floorboards.

Council also re-levelled the building, refurbished the disability access ramp, and installed new downpipes for the replacement roof.

Council has now secured $10,000 from the Australian Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure (LRCI) Program Grant that will go towards a total re-paint of the exterior of Cement Mills Hall.

The hall is owned by Council and operated by the Cement Mills Community Centre Maintenance Committee Inc. through a memorandum of understanding. Secretary and Treasurer of the Committee Helena Sissman said Council’s recent works and the new funding would give a new lease of life to the popular community hall.

“This upgrade will be very beneficial to our local area,” Ms Sissman said.

“The hall is central to a large area and holds various meetings, information and training days. For the community to raise these funds would be very difficult, so on behalf of the committee, I would like to thank the Goondiwindi Regional Council for the recent upgrades to our community hall.

“We also want to say a big thank-you to all the tradesmen involved,” she said.

Cr Springborg said that external funding sources such as the LRCI grant were an important opportunity for local councils to put money towards smaller projects that have big impacts on their communities.

“Investment in public infrastructure such as our small community halls is absolutely essential,” Cr Springborg said. “We want to ensure these buildings can continue to serve our residents and communities for years to come.

"By successfully funding the Cement Mills painting project externally, Council has been able to invest in the future of the hall and complete the final piece in the renovation puzzle - at zero cost to the ratepayer.”

Council will engage a local contractor to paint the hall. The project is expected to be completed before the end of this financial year.