Building Our Future
Chapter 3 - Investing in Our Players
With Hockey HQ becoming the heart of our club, our next priority was providing dedicated change room facilities for our growing number of junior players.
We needed a safe and welcoming space for our young players while giving coaches somewhere to gather teams around the whiteboard during wet weather, ensuring training can continue regardless of the conditions.
Change Room Project
Status: Final Stages (Require Painting and internal fit-out)
Project Value: $20,000 Grant + Community & Local Business Support and club fundraising (due to extra expenses)
Partnerships: Local Businesses, AMRShire, members & volunteers
Purpose: Dedicated boys’ and girls’ change rooms for junior players
Project Goal
What This Project Will Deliver
Boys' and girls' change rooms
Indoor coaching and meeting space
Whiteboard training area
Improved player wellbeing and privacy
Additional storage for hockey equipment
A facility that encourages more juniors and families to become involved in hockey.
Project Journey
15 May 2025
🎉 Fantastic news!
Margaret River Hockey Club received a $20,000 State Government election commitment towards a modular change room facility.
At the time we had priced a brand new 6m × 3m modular building at approximately $22,000 before delivery, planning approval / administration costs and power connection costs. It was obvious we'd need to think creatively, we needing the funding to stretch much further than simply purchasing a the modular unit.
The Paperwork...
Like many community infrastructure projects, the building itself was only part of the journey.
Before construction could begin we worked through:
📄 Development Approval
📄 Lease Variation
📄 Structural Engineering
📄 Building Certification
📄 Arborist Inspections
📄 Grant Agreements
📄 Planning Approval
At times it felt like every document required another document!
Thankfully, with the support of local professionals, Kim Luciano - Riverside Building Approvals and Roger and Toby Pateman - Margaret River Structural Engineers (WA) and Andy Winnings - Winnings Construction PTY Ltd, we could provide the details the Augusta Margaret River Shire required and the project gradually moved forward.
October 2025
🙌 Planning Approval Granted!
After months of approvals, the project finally received the green light.
The club was ready to begin preparing the site - unfortunately due to length of time paperwork took, we had now missed the window of opportunity with the builder to start the groundworks! We would have to wait until after Christmas now …
February – April 2026
Ground works commenced.
With the help of volunteers and local contractors:
the site was levelled
concrete pads were poured
footings prepared
fencing temporarily removed
everything made ready for delivery day.
Delivery Day (10 April 2026)
One of the most exciting moments of the project.
Meeting the truck on the Margaret River Bypass, volunteers escorted the oversized load from Shorter Transport - Forrestfield into Gloucester Park.
With only millimetres to spare, the refurbished transportable was expertly manoeuvred into position.
After months of planning...
our new change rooms had finally arrived.
11 March 2026
Electrical works were temporarily paused by the AMRShire while additional approvals were sought.
Not ideal—but another hurdle we'd eventually overcome.
We would like to acknowledge Jane Kelsbie MLA, whose support for community sporting clubs helped make this project possible.
Jane recognised the importance of investing in local sporting infrastructure and seeing the bigger picture for growing community sport.
Thanks Jane—you've been an absolute powerhouse!
May–July 2026
The next few months we received some incredible and much needed community support.
When we needed a few final adjustments to ensure the change rooms were perfectly positioned, we turned to Margaret River Steel Products.
With their experience and expertise, they supplied and installed the steel supports for the building before carefully realigning the transportable into its final position.
They later returned to fabricate, install and bolt down the new access grates at the change room entrances,
Thanks so much, Nathan and Patto—now our players can safely step into their new change rooms!
Geographe Underground Services
Aaron Myles and David "Choppa" Reid generously donated their time, machinery and expertise.
They:
Installed underground conduit for power
Worked beneath the pathway (saving the pathway from damage and extra costs to replace)
Supplied the Vinidex edging strips (creating a dividing section between the mulch and steel supports).
Helped to pressure clean Hockey HQ
Thanks so much for your support, especially on such a hot morning.
🚧 Almost There...
Like many community projects, this one has taken much longer than anyone imagined, we’ve had frustrations with administration delays, rising costs and red tape that have all stretched our original budget. .
But thanks to a very supportive club network, we’ve reached out to volunteers, local businesses and supporters, and we're almost there.
One more Busy Bee...
A few days of sunshine...
A lick of paint...
...and our junior players will finally have the change rooms they've waited so patiently for.
❤️ Thank You
This project is proof of what can be achieved when a community comes together.
To every volunteer, sponsor, business and supporter...
Thank you for helping us build something that will benefit all of our Margaret River hockey players, present and future members. 🏑👏
Why Was This Project Needed?
No dedicated change rooms.
Players arriving straight from school with nowhere suitable to change.
Wet weather.
No private space for female players.
No indoor coaching area during bad weather.
School bags and hockey equipment lined up against the fence in the rain.
It simply wasn't the experience our players deserved.
Finding the Right Building
Rather than purchasing a new transportable, the committee searched for a quality refurbished building that would maximise every grant dollar.
In July 2025, Wally and Maxine travelled to Pigdon Portables near Pinjarra.
Dave and his team generously worked with the club to modify a former mine-site office by:
installing an internal partition
creating a girls' privacy wall
removing air-conditioning units
installing a whiteboard
The result was two spacious junior change rooms and a flexible coaching space.
A fantastic outcome—and exceptional value for money.
Thanks Dave, you’re an absolute legend!
A Community Project
As the project progressed, unexpected costs had began to reduce the original fit-out budget.
Additional fuel charges
Planning requirements.
Structural engineering.
Site connection costs.
Like previous projects, our local community stepped forward to help.
11 July 2026 our new fridge/freezer was delivered.
One of the final pieces of the puzzle was making Hockey HQ even more functional on training nights.
Thanks to the generous support of Val, Patrick and the team at RetraVision Margaret River, we now have a dedicated fridge/freezer in Hockey HQ.
After four years of playing on our training turf, having no ice on site is a genuine game changer—especially when we have the occasional mishap / injury on the pitch!
It also gives us a dedicated space to keep food fresh for our weekly junior BBQs and cold drinks ready for junior players after training.
A huge thank you to the team at RetraVision for helping make Hockey HQ even more practical and welcoming for our players, families and volunteers.
Your support is very much appreciated.
The project isn't quite finished...
The walls still need painting.
The windows need blinds.
Hooks need installing.
Thanks to **Mitre 10 Margaret River and new Store Manager Lockie Hill, who approached suppliers to help provide the paint and these finishing items.
We're looking forward to giving the building its final coat of paint as soon as we get a break in the winter weather.
Wally the Site Manager
Never one to sit still... assisted with the pressure washing of HQ. Then it’s back again to shovelling gravel, levelling and finishing landscaping around the transportable with fresh bark mulch (supplied by AMRShire).
One more job ticked off!
Bunnings have generously donated team benches for inside the new change rooms.
Our coaches can now continue training sessions around the whiteboard, even when the weather isn't cooperating.
What Sets Us Apart
People-First Approach
Everything we do is built around understanding your needs and helping you succeed—because when you thrive, so do we.
Long-Term Relationships
We’re not just here for the now. We love creating lasting relationships with our clients and growing with them over time.
Proven Process, Flexible Execution
We bring structure where it counts and adaptability where it matters. Our methods are clear, but always responsive.