Pictured above: Mitchell Shire Mayor Cr Rhonda Sanderson is joined by Cr Bill Chisholm and members of the Broadford Football Netball Club at the launch of the Harley Hammond Reserve Oval Lighting project.
After waiting an entire season due to COVID-19 restrictions, the Broadford sporting community finally flicked the switch on four newly installed 30-metre light towers at Harley Hammond Reserve Oval this week.
Mitchell Shire Mayor Cr Rhonda Sanderson and Cr Bill Chisholm joined the Broadford Football Netball Club for their season launch on Thursday night (15 April) to see the oval under lights.
Each light tower houses four LED lamps that can be set to 50 lux for training and 100 lux for competition. These are the current Australian standards for Australian Rules Football at a local level. The lights have the capacity to be upgraded to 150 lux in the future.
The new lighting provides more even visibility across the ground which improves safety for participants and the condition of the ground and means more sections of the oval can be used for training. This is in addition to the oval being reconstructed in 2017, which provided a new playing surface, irrigation and drainage. These upgrades have greatly improved the quality of the oval and have increased the oval's carrying capacity.
The lights also reduce the visual impact on surrounding areas with a special design to focus on the oval. LED fittings are more energy efficient and have a longer operational life that is cost efficient.
Local sporting groups at Harley Hammond Reserve that use the oval include:
- Broadford Football Netball Club
- Broadford Junior Football Netball Club
- Broadford Auskick
- Broadford Cricket Club
The lighting upgrade cost $297,000 and was fully funded by Mitchell Shire Council.
There is also a separate construction project underway at the reserve with new netball/tennis courts and a shared-use pavilion for these groups being funded by Mitchell Shire Council, the Victorian Government through Sport and Recreation Victoria's Female Friendly Facilities Fund and The Harley Hammond Reserve Committee of Management.
Broadford begins their 2021 campaign on Saturday (17 April) in the AFL Outer East Division 2 Football and Netball League with a home game against Yea. The action kicks off at 10am at Harley Hammond Reserve.
