Torrensville Bowling Club ‘expects’ to be acquired for South Road tunnels
Members of one of Adelaide’s most popular bowling clubs say they are preparing for the worst when the South Road tunnels get rolling.
SA News
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One of Adelaide’s most popular bowling clubs is bracing for demolition to make way for the North-South Corridor.
Torrensville Bowling Club secretary Brenton Rolton said he expects the property, adjacent to the Thebarton Oval on South Road, to be either fully or partly acquired by the government when works begin on the Torrens to Darlington’s northern tunnels.
Construction of that section is not expected to begin until 2026.
“We’ve always had a fair idea we would be impacted if something like this would happen,” Mr Rolton said.
“It depends where those tunnels end up coming out.”
When asked if Mr Rolton was bracing for the club to be acquired, he said: “Yes, we probably expect to be, either partially or wholly, we are not sure yet”.
“We’re not going to fight them, because we know (the project) is important … there’s more than just us that it’s going to affect.”
The club underwent a major redevelopment in 2019, with a new clubroom and a new undercover 12-rink bowling green.
According to the most recent design proposal, the northern entry and exit point of the tunnels would be positioned on the corner of South Road and Ashwin Parade.
This could place the bowling club and the Thebarton Community Centre at risk of demolition.
The Brickworks Marketplace is also close to the proposed entry and exit points.
City of West Torrens mayor Michael Coxon said it was too early to tell which properties would be affected.
“We don’t have any clarity around that at the moment,” Mr Coxon said.
“The final details just haven’t been revealed to us as yet. We’re anxious to know, so we can start working on our future plans.”
Managers of the Brickworks Marketplace did not respond when contacted by The Advertiser.
The Adelaide Crows Football Club, which is eyeing the Thebarton Oval as a possible new home, is understood to be monitoring the situation closely. Transport minister Corey Wingard said the final reference design of the project will be completed at the end of the year.
Work on the northern twin tunnels, expected to be about 2km long, won’t start until 2026.
Earlier in the week, the government started the acquisition process of 64 properties in Clovelly Park to make way for the “launch site” of two tunnel-boring machines for the southern section of the motorway.
Work at the site will begin in 2023 and take several years to build the 4km southern tunnels – the first stage of the $9.9bn Torrens to Darlington upgrade.
The entire motorway, the final stage of the North-South Corridor, will be finished by 2030 and lead to 390 properties being demolished.
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