Belmont 16s Refurbishment

Belmont 16s is one of the largest clubs in the Hunter Region as well as the leading 16ft Skiff sailing club in Australia. It began in 1922 as the Belmont Sailing Club, and it’s a club which is proud of its history: for its centenary, it:

• published an excellent historical booklet, “From Brooks Parade to Mill Creek – Belmont 16s Centenary Celebration”, and
• undertook a major upgrade of its Belmont premises, called the Centenary Project, which included increasing the floor space, and opening up the building to take full advantage of its stunning location on Lake Macquarie.

Graph has its roots in Belmont (it moved to the current Adamstown premises in 2009), so it’s not surprising that it has completed a number of projects for Belmont 16s over the years but, after a competitive tender process, we were honoured to be entrusted with the Centenary Project. Key features involved:

• new porte cochere, club entry and foyer
• refurbishment of existing ground floor gaming, lounge, main bar, bistro, and kids play areas
• expansion of ground floor bistro with new indoor/outdoor dining and courtyard
• refurbishment and expansion of level one administrations offices, function rooms, amenities, kitchen, and function terrace areas
• new level one cocktail bar, restaurant, and lounge areas with covered terrace
• new future restaurant shell expansion and associated future provision works
• carpark reconstruction, external landscaping and façade refurbishment.

The club remained in operation throughout the course of the project, with the work undertaken in stages and carefully planned and co-ordinated on a daily basis to minimise adverse impacts on trading and to ensure public safety at all times. The completed project has been a great investment for the club, and a boon to its patrons. The project won the 2024 MBA Newcastle Excellence in Building Awards, Extensions, Renovations and Refurbishments $10m to $20m.