Gold Coast clubs want June reopening like restaurants and bars

Gold Coast clubs are demanding a level playing field with cafes and restaurants, spelling out when they want to reopen in June if COVID-19 restrictions can be further lifted.

GOLD Coast clubs are demanding a level playing field with cafes and restaurants, and want to reopen in June if COVID-19 restrictions can be further lifted.

Clubs Queensland Acting CEO Dan Nipperess said the state’s community clubs should be treated the same as restaurants and cafes, which have been mooted to re-open for customers next month in a first step to recovery for the hospitality industry.

The renovated Surfers Paradise RSL club. Picture: Tim Marsden.

On the eve of tomorrow’s critical national Cabinet meeting, Mr Nipperess said Coast residents should be allowed to return to their community venues at the same time as restaurants and cafes unless health advice was released to show otherwise.

Queensland’s community clubs included sporting, returned services leagues, surf lifesaving, cultural, ethnic and special interests clubs, he said.

Research undertaken by Clubs Queensland last year as the government considered a second casino showed some Coast clubs were facing significant financial distress.

At least 30 community clubs would face “a high risk of financial failure after the introduction of a second casino”, the report warned.

The $851 million clubs industry was considered under threat with 164 closures since 2009, the report said. The impact of COVID-19 restrictions has created an even greater financial shock.

The Surfers Paradise RSL club. Picture: Tim Marsden.

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Mr Nipperess said the State’s 860 not-for-profit clubs in Queensland play a critical role in their communities.

“Those community clubs should be provided with the same fair go as restaurants and cafes when it comes to reopening for customers. What is the difference between people being allowed to gather in the confined spaces of restaurants or at a café in a busy shopping centre compared to a community club,” he said.

“If there is health advice that says otherwise, that advice should be publicly released so that

Queenslanders can learn more about the steps to recovery.

“We support proper social distancing, hygiene measures and acting at all times in accordance with health advice, but one would think that if it’s safe for restaurants and cafes, then it’s safe for community clubs.”

Clubs were heavily regulated and well positioned in terms of compliance with additional regulation around social distancing and hygiene measures, Mr Nipperess said.

Clubs Queensland says it is proactively drafting measures which will assist its members across the state in developing and enforcing strict health compliance measures for the safety of its patrons.

Nerang RSL president Terry McDonald with young players, from left, Zayne Johnson, Noah Champney and Kyhan Duggan.

Clubs Queensland President and Nerang RSL President Terry McDonald said the reopening of community clubs protected the jobs of 22,000 Queenslanders who work for the organisations, which collectively generate more than $2.2 billion of economic impact annually.

“These clubs are also a meeting point for people in the Gold Coast region who rely on social

interaction,” Mr McDonald said.

“This interaction can be done with proper social distancing measures in place. But it’s an important consideration after so many weeks of social isolation for many people on the Gold Coast.

“The chance to interact again with people is an important consideration in the need to provide a fair go for all hospitality venues at this time.”