Council is looking to get North Wollongong up to scratch before the world visits the region for an international cycling event.
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In September next year, Wollongong is hosting the UCI Road World Championships and the city's Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery reckoned North Wollongong beach will be a focal point during that time.
"This whole precinct will be the focus of a lot of activities during the UCI road cycling championships," Cr Bradbery said.
"So it's very important it's up to the highest of standards. This is where people will come to have their coffee, as well as wear their Lycra and show off their great bikes and their athleticism.
"So it's all about the whole tourist experience."
The focus of those improvements is the refurbishment of the North Wollongong Surf Club and an upgraded seawall, which will include tiered concrete seating.
Cr Bradbery said the seawall will likely become a popular beachside spot.
"People will want to come down here and enjoy the sunrise," Cr Bradbery said.
"I've been told that [North Wollongong] could be the best place to see the sun rise in the city.
"This work offers a dual purpose - the concrete steps will act as a buffer for the building against significant wave action and will also provide a welcome spot to sit that's off the sand."
The seawall is partly funded through a $4.2 million state government grant and South Coast MP Shelley Hancock was on hand to see the works start.
"These initial works have established a building site on the beach with construction on the protective seawall - designed to keep nearby buildings and community assets safe from storm events and coastal wave damage - planned to start shortly," Mrs Hancock said.
The work on the surf club includes reconfiguring internal spaces to suit modern surf lifesaving functions, installing an elevator and the construction of additional balcony areas.
"The refurbishment of the clubhouse itself will cost about $10.5 million and then the surf club has come on side to help us with the refurbishment of the internal space as well," Cr Bradbery said.
"It's been a challenge because it also has heritage features that have to blend in with other areas of the precinct.
"Council over time has slowly put everything in place. This is the final aspect of this investment and it's a really important piece of our tourism infrastructure."
On Monday, Mrs Hancock announced a $309,000 grant to help with the internal upgrade of the surf club.
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Glen Humphries
I'm an award-winning senior journalist with the Illawarra Mercury and have well over two decades' worth of experience in newspapers. I cover the three local councils in the Illawarra for the Mercury, state and federal politics, as well as writing for the TV guide. If I'm not writing, I'm reading.
I'm an award-winning senior journalist with the Illawarra Mercury and have well over two decades' worth of experience in newspapers. I cover the three local councils in the Illawarra for the Mercury, state and federal politics, as well as writing for the TV guide. If I'm not writing, I'm reading.
