Sawtell Surf Life Saving Club

Sawtell 2015- present

The Sawtell Surf Life saving Club is a highly valued community asset with rich local history, and is a popular recreational destination for residents and tourists.

The Surf Club Refurbishment Project presents the opportunity to provide a much needed revitalisation of the existing site and surf club building, and transform it to create a landmark beachside destination with an iconic public building which contributes to its users safety, health, happiness, and well being.

Working closely with SSLC representative Gary Murray, the design was developed to provide effective planning to economise space, rationalise amenity requirements, get the most for the budget, and create an environment with a sense of ‘place’- inspiring spaces inside and out that function well and that will define the club.

The existing building uses large amounts of energy and provides less than ideal living and working conditions for its occupants. Internal spaces are difficult to cool and heat, have poor lighting, poor ventilation, and solar penetration.

The vision is to revitalise the existing Surf Life Saving Club facility to establish a valuable public asset of outstanding design and visual amenity- a safe and healthy environment for people to enjoy the surf, and interact with each other and the physical place around them.

With a focus on affordability, refurbishment in lieu of demolition and rebuild is considered more sustainable in terms of saving in the embodied impact of materials, resource efficiency, waste disposal and architectural value.

The design aims to utilise the existing structure and infrastructure to create a more sustainable urban environment with a low environmental impact, which is resource efficient in both construction and operation, and create a healthy building with an optimum efficiency that allows its users to operate at their highest functionality.

The user experience will be enhanced with inspiring spaces inside and out that are ‘engaging’, with cultural connections being made through interpretive artwork panels integrated within the building fabric which communicate stories of the Sawtell club and community.

The Sawtell Surf Club renovation aims to make tangible connections with the surrounding environment through a creative use of materials, light and volume, while addressing security, surveillance, and clear identification of public/ private space.

A healthier environment will be provided through a building which is more energy efficient, cheaper to operate and easier to maintain. With a focus on flexibility, the building will be designed to grow and change as needs change.