TODAY
17o Mostly sunny
17o 19o 22o 18o SAT
SUN
MON
TUE
www.wangarattachronicle.com.au
Phone (03) 5723 0100
FRIDAY, September 1, 2023
Weekend Edition $1.80 INC. GST
The Academy is closing
Page 3
New courts for Whorouly Page 3
Weekend of finals fever
LEAH’S FRIENDLY SANCTUARY LEAH Bell can look after up to 100 rescued animals at her Free Spirits Farm Sanctuary at Glenrowan. Sheep, goats, pigs, turkeys, ducks, geese, chickens, rabbits, cats and guinea pigs have all been in her care since 2019. Full story page 10
PHOTO: Kurt Hickling
Sport
WSAC rises from ashes post-COVID Membership M b hip base b recovers but b t ultimate lti t goal g l is i to t double d bl currentt fifig gures
IT’S been a rocky road for Wangaratta Sports and Aquatic Centre (WSAC) since council took over from the YMCA, greatly due to the fallout from the pandemic, but real shifts in support from the community are rewriting the script from a horror story to one that paints a more glorifying picture.
BY STEVE KELLY skelly@ nemedia.com.au
Financially, the centre has run at a sizable loss, with 2021-22 revenue falling $1.56 million short of and forecast income of $3.27m, while last financial
year there was $2.19m in revenue, $1.71m below budget. Any business realising these shortcomings would find them difficult to absorb, but with the Learn to Swim program proving extremely popular and new infrastructure and equipment in the form of the new gym space,
Four killed in freeway crash: P3
the council owned and operated centre is well on the way to recovery and beyond. Since the new and larger gym space opened in May, memberships have increased 15 per cent, and although overall membership is hovering around 10 per cent of the Rural City of Wangaratta’s
population, the brains trust driving the ship have an optimistic goal to double this figure to make the asset “the best in regional Victoria”. The facility’s budgeted projection for the 202324 year still predicts a shortfall of about $1.17 million based off $2.83m revenue.
This is in great contrast to the vision council had in November 2020 when the Rural City of Wangaratta took over the facility. When news was reported that the YMCA’s contract was not going to be extended, some in the community questioned the move. ■ Continued page 2
Alarming local poverty figures: P5
Does your car have: Hail damage? Storm damage?
Shopping trolley dent? Someone opened their car door into yours?
WE NOW OFFER PAINTLESS DENT REMOVAL 15 Sinclair Drive, Wangaratta www.premierpanels.com.au
Call 5721 8624