THERE are fears the Victoria-NSW border restrictions will spell the end for Euston Club Resort if they discourage Robinvale residents from heading to Euston for leisure.
Chief executive Ray Jones said although the permit for cross-border residents allowed Victorians to cross to NSW for daily life, he was afraid many wouldn’t realise that included visits for recreation or to dine out.
“What I desperately need is for the people from the Robinvale postcode to come across the river for their recreational purposes to keep this place alive,” he said.
“(Otherwise) we might as well close the doors and we won’t recover from this.”
The club closed in March when COVID-19 restrictions first came into place, but reopened on June 3.
The club is now open from 11am-11pm daily, offering its usual range of dining and gaming across the bistro and sports bar.
The resort is also open for accommodation.
General manager Guy Fielding told Sunraysia Daily on Tuesday he feared a second shutdown would push the club to the brink.
He said this was worse than March 23, when the club stood down 80 people.
“That was the worst day of our lives. Well, this one’s worse, because we now believe that we will be shutting the doors.”
According to Mr Fielding, a hard border closure would have been a nail in the coffin for the club.
“It would take away our ability to generate revenue for the club,” he said.
“If we don’t have that, we don’t have a club, we don’t have jobs.”
The club contributes more than just employment to the Robinvale region.
“Our support comes from Victoria, hence the return of our funding goes to Victoria,” Mr Jones said.
“We give over $150,000 of funding a year into Robinvale and surrounds.
“A $500,000 grant came from the Euston Club that’s going into the Robinvale District Health (Services).”
While the club faces uncertainty due to heightening COVID-19 fears, so does one of its most ambitious projects – a solar farm, which Mr Jones estimated would save the club $30,000 a month in electricity costs.
“We’re a week to 10 days away from finishing it and all the employees have been called back to Western Australia to get out of here,” he said.
“So, all of a sudden, now I’ve got a $2 million project that’s in jeopardy of not being opened.”
Only a few days into the border closure, staff at the Euston Club are hoping Robinvale locals and visitors from across Sunraysia and southern NSW head over for a meal to chip in and support the club at the heart of the community.
“I’ve been building this place up for 26 years,” Mr Jones said.
“This place is dear to us.”
