BATEMANS Bay Rotary Club is working on a Rotary Trail which recognises the club’s 55-year contribution to the town.
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The trail will highlight on a brochure, website and perhaps a smart phone app public spaces Rotary has contributed to.
Signs will also be erected at each site.
Batemans Bay Rotary has played an active role in the community and in its first few years supplied a growing Batemans Bay with most of its parks and playgrounds.
It was responsible for the building of the Batemans Bay helipad for medical emergencies and the idea of Fiona Lodge, a retreat for families of children who are fighting life-threatening illness, was first floated by a Rotarian.
Points of interest on the Rotary Trail are set to include the site of the Nelligen caravan park Nelligen Park, Holmes Lookout, the Rotary Clock, Corrigans Beach Park, Observation Point, Caseys Beach park and the limited mobility area at the Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Gardens.
Also set to be included is Korners Park after the club donated $10,000 towards a new contemplation space as part of a revamp under way by Eurobodalla Shire Council.
Batemans Bay Rotary Club’s special projects director David Ashford said the trail idea came after Rotary Park, adjacent to the Batemans Bay Marina, was removed last year to make way for a redevelopment.
He said all service clubs generally had a park and the club considered approaching Eurobodalla Shire Council to have the name of Korners Park changed to Rotary Park, but another idea took shape.
“We decided this is a better way for the future, rather than simply lobbying to have one of the parks’ names changed to meet it, we’re far better off being a bit more holistic about it,” Mr Ashford said.
“We thought, ‘well, we’ve got a whole range of things we’ve been involved with in this town, why not instead of just trying to have a Rotary Park, (have) a Rotary Trail?’.”
Mr Ashford said it was important to educate the community that Rotary had been an intricate part of Batemans Bay for decades.
“We put together all of the things that Rotary has had an impact with, because they’re quite interesting, and each of the things we’ve got going into the future,” Mr Ashford said.
“We see (the trail) as Rotary being able to contribute.
“It won’t just be for a small sector of the community, we much prefer to be doing things that are useful for people.”
Rotary remains active in Batemans Bay, with about 35 members who meet weekly at the Bay Waters Resort.
Mr Ashford said members annually fundraised between $90,000 and $100,000, much of which came from the lease of Nelligen Park.
Of this, the club donates about $10,000 to Rotary Inter-
national projects, as well as about $30,000 to local youth programs such as the Batemans Bay Youth Foundation.