Units, new venue for Club Ryde Ex in major development for Victoria Rd site
After more than a decade in the pipeline, a northwest Sydney club has revealed ambitious $800m plans for a new venue with a touch of Vegas and 600 apartments.
NSW
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Club Ryde Ex’s long-held plans to redevelop its Victoria Rd site are finally starting to come to fruition with details revealed for an $800m project that includes 600 units surrounding the venue which aims to be a “club that hasn’t seen before”.
Developer Southern Han International, which is behind the Epica apartment block in Epping, is delivering the project with the club, formerly known as Ryde Ex-Services Memorial and Community Club.
The homes will include 90 dwellings for frontline workers and could be housed over five blocks at heights yet to be determined but could reach 25 storeys.
Alternate options could include a tall tower housing the units, a short building alongside a tall tower, or two short towers.
Club Ryde Ex chief executive Dennis Skinner said the club needed to diversify beyond a reliance on poker machines to survive and hoped the overhaul would offer the “whole package” of food and entertainment.
“I’m really mindful of delivering a club that hasn’t seen before,’’ he said.
The new club will spread over 2000sq m with a 600sq m terrace and plans for restaurants from traditional bistro meals to higher end cuisine.
“We’ll do something for both ends of the scale,’’ Mr Skinner said.
“You can still buy a steak sandwich and if you want to buy eight or nine marble steak you can.
“We are determined to deliver a venue that will just be ‘wow’.’’
Management also aims to attract more young members to the venue.
“We’ve never really been an entertainment hub before but we’re going to lean that way – and that doesn’t mean its going to be doof doof music every week,’’ Mr Skinner said.
“We’ll have a range of music, a range of shows.’’
After a recent jaunt to Las Vegas, Mr Skinner has garnered some inspiration from the Durango Casino & Resort – a light-filled venue that goes against the grain of the usually dimly-lit Sin City casinos.
He said the new Club Ryde Ex would feature 5m ceilings to accommodate massive LED screens and glass to allow light to flood the venue.
“We don’t just want this to be another registered club in Sydney,’’ he said.
“We will look to present a very different venue from clubs in the past. You won’t be walking into the lounge and seeing a TV every couple of metres.
“If you’re going with your husband or wife to the cocktail lounge, you won’t have blokes screaming at you ‘Can you put the footy on The Tele’.’’
He also hopes residents living in the complex and locals would be proud to call it “my club”.
He said of the 11,200 frontline employees who live in the Ryde local government area, 7500 have to travel outside the LGA and the development would help deliver homes for them.
“At the end of the day you can never have enough housing,’’ he said.
Club Ryde Ex has 8500 members and that figure is expected to swell when the new-look venue opens, subject to approval.
The state government's Housing Delivery Authority has endorsed the units for the club, which must now prepare details and meet requirements for the Planning Department if it gets the final tick of approval.
The club and developer will soon meet the government to discuss plans and could seal approval by the end of the year.
If approval is successful, construction will begin early 2027 with stage one – the club and apartments – to be ready in early 2029 while stage two is slated to wrap up be yearly 2031.
The existing club at 724-730 Victoria Rd will continue operating with a reduced capacity and the old building will be demolished once the new club opens.
Courtesy buses will ferry passengers to offset reduced parking.
The club’s members voted against the development and sale of land for units in 2014 and the venue went into administration in 2015 after a $1.5m debt.
However, Mr Skinner said members were now well informed about the project and the development was about making the club financially secure.
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Originally published as Units, new venue for Club Ryde Ex in major development for Victoria Rd site
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