February has been a busy month so we have a number of updates to share with our valued members and local community regarding the Heart of Forestville and proposed redevelopment of the Forestville RSL Club.

Heart of Forestville Naming Competition Winners

Earlier this month we were thrilled to present five very worthy local community groups and charities with a $500 donation from the Forestville RSL Club as a result of them being nominated by our successful nominees in the Heart of Forestville naming Competition.

Local charities and community groups who received donations included:

Forestville Scouts
Northern Beaches WIRES Wildlife Rescue
Forest Lions AFL Football Club
Streetwork
Cancer Council

Local charities, community groups and competition nominees being presented with their donations from Club President Tony Mooney and CEO Ian Thomson

Development Application (DA) Update

There have been a number of meetings held with Council this month as we work through the issues they have raised, the most recent being a very productive meeting involving the Club’s Redevelopment Team. This was an extremely beneficial meeting with the representatives from both sides providing supportive and helpful input to the DA itself.

The Club’s Redevelopment Team has also attended a briefing of the Sydney North Planning Panel (the DA approval authority) where the proposal was introduced, and Council and our team were encouraged to resolve any issues raised during Council’s assessment to date.

As a result of our most recent feedback from Council, the Club is working on some design refinements. Once these changes are made, we will go back to Council and continue to move forward.

Retirement Community Name Confirmed

We are excited to share the name of our boutique new retirement community in Forestville will be Garraway, which means Sulphur Crested Cockatoo in Darug language.

The name was suggested by Elder and Knowledge Holder, Professor Dennis Foley (an ex-serviceman) in consultation with the Club and warmly supported by the Board as appropriate recognition of the traditional custodians of the land where Forestville is located, the Darug people.

NSW Liquor & Gaming Update

A number of our members mentioned that they read on a social media site that the Forestville RSL Club has been the subject of a NSW Liquor & Gaming (L&G) enquiry regarding alleged breaches of the Registered Clubs Act (1976). As a result, we felt it prudent to update our members that a vexatious and unfounded complaint was made in December 2024 which alleged the Forestville RSL Club had breached the Registered Clubs Act (1976).

NSW Liquor & Gaming investigated the complaint and advised last week on 20th February that “no further action be taken”, confirming the club had acted in accordance with the Registered Clubs Act at all times, particularly in relation to our redevelopment proposal.

Unfortunately, legally defending this unfounded complaint resulted in a substantial drain on the club’s time, money and resources. As always, we encourage our Members and the local community to ask any questions that they may have, to ensure they have the correct and current facts relating to the redevelopment and not listen to or act on rumours, lies and falsehoods which we are aware are being communicated by a small group opposed to the redevelopment.

Redevelopment FAQs Resource

To further support our efforts to keep our members properly informed with accurate information we prepared and distributed a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Fact Sheet earlier this month to our members and subscribers.

We have also uploaded this resource onto the Heart of Forestville website and encourage our members to read through this helpful information update. This document clearly outlines the board's reasons for the redevelopment which include its desire to:

retain local control and 100% ownership of the club’s land and buildings by not being forced to amalgamate with another club or sell to a future developer
reduce the club’s reliance on gaming given that a drop of only 25% in gaming revenue would over time make the club insolvent; and
upgrade old, unused and expensive facilities

You can access this directly by clicking here.

February Redevelopment Information Drop-In Session

Last week we held a successful Redevelopment Information Drop-In session for those who couldn't attend our December event. Attendees were able to speak to the redevelopment team, ask questions, and share their feedback as we shape the future of the Forestville RSL Club.

The team fielded a number of questions about the retirement community, the planning process and the next steps. A number of positive comments were received from attendees who said they found the opportunity to speak to the team one-on-one very valuable.

As always, we encourage our members and the local community to contact us with any questions via www.heartofforestville.com.au .

We look forward to keeping you updated on our progress in the coming months and years ahead.

Regards,

Tony Mooney, President and Ian Thomson, CEO
Forestville RSL

February 2025 Update