Club Central Hurstville is an integral part of south Sydney’s hospitality landscape. It serves as an epicentre of dining, gaming and entertainment for the Hurstville and more broadly St George area community, housing three upscale eateries, a Travelodge Hotel, and a sprawling conference centre.
The Challenges
Founded as Illawarra Catholic Club in 1962, the club transitioned to its current location in 2009 – and quickly became a destination for both locals and visitors. By the mid-2010s its board had begun planning for a multi-million-dollar expansion, one that would expand its facilities and service offerings as well as a complete refurbishment of the entire club whilst diversifying their revenue streams.
But large-scale projects are almost always accompanied by complexities. Empire Project Management inherited a design and construct contract that had innate challenges which required our team of experts to work through additional and complex administrative and management processes in order to finalise the design swiftly, whilst construction was already underway. There was also a lot of change management to get on top of with the engaged contractor.
As the project progressed, the most immediate challenge became managing the delivery of works across the COVID-19 period.
As works continued during COVID-19, we were required to carefully manage that variable and the inconsistent workforce availability. We had to adequately manage the project timelines accordingly as well as managing our stakeholders’ expectations whilst quickly adapting the ever-changing government health orders.
We also experienced challenges with the staging of works. As the project progressed, we needed to explore options and be open and agile to modifying the different stages where construction and refurbishment works in Club spaces were taking place to ensure we best managed our clients’ operational imperatives.
Works were also completed on a very busy street with a significantly high level of traffic being opposite a Westfield shopping centre and main transport hubs. We needed to ensure the contractor had well developed plans and management strategies in place to minimise public domain disruption. We also ensured that the plans that were being set were implemented effectively and where adjustments needed to be made, they were completed to always ensure public safety.
The Solutions
Empire Project Management were engaged by the board to stabilise the delivery of the project which we completed by developing a suitable strategy at the beginning to identify the key project risks and to mitigate them.
Our first priorities were to dive deeply into the scope of the project and the clients’ requirements. Through our experience, we developed a thorough understanding of what the key issues and risks were at the time and were anticipated in the future. We developed a robust plan with the contractor, and we had a clear understanding that we could then communicate to the client. We identified what areas we were able to work within that were acceptable to the client, and we were flexible and creative in developing the required strategies.
With our exceptional communication, risk identification processes, safety checks and risk management, quality came under control. We then leveraged on our extensive experience working within live environments to get both costs and timelines on track. Thanks to our Director led approach and technical expertise, we also ensured all subsequent work was conducted to the
right standards.
Through our meticulous approach to communication, we then strengthened communication with all stakeholders by communicating the right messages with the right people and at the right time. Our key communication groups included club operations, the executive leadership team, the board of directors, consultants, design team and construction contractor. We also ensured communication was clear with authorities such as local council, water utility providers and fire services.
Every phase of the project required constant and efficient coordination of works between many team members and consultants. Additionally, whilst the Club works were underway, the coordination of the demolition of the adjacent property and the construction of the brand new nine-storey tower had to also be closely managed.
Another key mandate was the development and maintenance of real time cost reports that were accessible to the Club that considered the various direct contract arrangements the Club had established with design and other consultants, Contractors and various direct suppliers. Our solution to this challenge was delivered with support of UniPhi software which we typically use across all our projects.
The Outcomes
Club Central Hurstville’s expansion and complete refurbishment was implemented successfully – within budget, on schedule, and to the client’s expectations. The core club assets (food & beverage, gaming, functions and administration) doubled in size, completely diversifying its revenue base with the addition of the new hotel asset.
The new 9-storey building comprises a new 124-bed Travelodge hotel, a 5-storey basement carpark, a rooftop bar and seamless connection to the existing club building across three storeys which also benefited from upgraded infrastructure, facilities, food and beverage venues and the installation of 204 EGMs across three areas. The expanded gaming area was created to integrate with the operational spaces that were being activated by the project.
The new restaurant – Central Cucina bistro, delivers family friendly options as well as private dining and banquet options.
Located on level nine, the contemporary designed Above 8 Rooftop Bar & Lounge has sweeping 180-degree views of Sydney’s skyline from the Royal National Park, Botany Bay and the city.
Level three of the club features an expanded function centre – Southern Sydney Event Centre. With a 600-seat auditorium that was carefully designed and can be reconfigured into five separate rooms making it the largest event venue in Southern Sydney.
The hotel’s refurbished amenities and the club’s expanded offerings now work in complete harmony to successfully attract leisure seekers and business travellers.
