Bondi Pavilion revamp: Waverley Mayor Paula Masselos says building worth ‘every cent’

The grand $48 million re-imagining of Bondi Pavilion has been unveiled as an energy efficient, community focused and world-class facility.

A major revamp of Bondi Pavilion four years in the making, transforming the destination venue into a world-class facility, is set to open and welcome tourists from across the globe in coming days.

Despite the budget blowing out to almost double – from $26.7 million to $48 million – Waverley mayor Paula Masselos says the renovated facility was worth “every single cent” and will stand proudly alongside equivalent cultural centres in global cities.

“This building now will be here for another 100 years,” Ms Masselos said. “As tourism opens up again people will revel in all of this,” she said. “It will be good for the community, it will be good for business. And it is also a building that I believe will be paying for itself.

The tech-connected, community-focused and green credentialed space will feature a lovingly-restored music studio, welcome centre, theatre, pottery studio and indoor and outdoor event space.

The building will be powered by connected technology and more than 250 solar panels.

Bondi Pavillion will reopen to the public on Friday 23. Photo: Waverley Council.

Ms Masselos said those accusing the council of having “overspent” are “not actually telling the full story”, citing initial costings were indicative and did not consider the entire footprint of the building.

She said two years of rolling lockdowns also expanded timelines and costs, reinforcing council had been expeditious with the taxpayer funds and had resisted privatisation invitations.

The outdoor space will host its annual film festival this summer. Photo: Waverley Council.

The mayor said she wanted the Pavilion to “feel like home” for our community.

“It is something that will keep drawing people back to it because it is a place that people love and reflects who we are as Waverly and who we are as Bondi,” she said.

The vision for the community hub is most powerfully captured in the pavilion’s Bondi Story room; a two-year multidisciplinary council project which has collected more than 300 stories from the multicultural community which forms the suburb’s rich history.

The renovated theatre. Photo: Waverley Council.

Pottery studio at Bondi Pavilion. Photo: Waverley Council.

The museum space features interactive stories of residents, including First Nations and immigrant stories. The portal will remain open so that members of the community can continue to share their experiences.

Ms Masselos said intensive community consultation drove how the community space would be reborn.

Open seven days a week from Friday September 23, a raft of events will run for three weeks to celebrate. Following a tender process, the tenancy for the cafe/restaurant site was awarded to House Made Hospitality, the team behind Circular Quay’s multi-level dining venue, Hinchcliff House.