Club Central Hurstville and Menai are welcoming more members back through the doors and celebrating one month of being reopen after the government-imposed a 70 day shutdown due to COVID-19.
Club Central Group chief executive officer, Paul Richardson believes that members will be pleasantly surprised at some of the changes made at both venues during the lockdown period which lasted from March 23 until May 31.
"Although we much prefer having members and guests filling the clubs, we were actually busier than ever while our doors were closed," Mr Richardson said.
"We managed to bring forward a huge amount of work that was planned for this time next year on our $75 million project at Club Central Hurstville, which kept our team as well as contractors working throughout the shutdown," he said.
"As the first members walked through the doors in early June, work was being finalised on a spectacular new foyer and reception area including a new reception desk which takes pride of place on entry. This is complemented by a feature lighting installation and new screens to assist in communication with members.
"Further into the Club, more improvements include a new bar, feature lighting, a giant five-metre by three-metre screen and a refreshed floor plan.
"As soon as we had to shut our doors, our team began planning for reopening. Even still it was a hectic time leading up to the reopening and our team has not stopped since. In the month of June we've had 3,465 new members and 1,581 existing members renew their memberships.
The support from the community has just been fantastic," Mr Richardson said.
July also brings more positive news as the government restrictions on the number of people allowed into the Clubs have been further relaxed. Club Central Hurstville can now host over 500 people at any one time.
The Club Central Menai team have also used the lockdown to make some changes to the club premises.
"Basically as soon as we shut our doors, our team at Club Menai began planning for when we could reopen and part of that was improving the connection between the indoor areas of the club and our outdoor terrace," Mr Richardson said.
"We've installed large bi-fold doors along the Terrace Bistro which really open the area up and help the Terrace Bistro live up to its name.
"Our new sports bar menu is also proving very popular, with delicious light snacks available while you enjoy your favourite sport on the big screen."
Health and safety are top priorities with thorough cleaning and sanitisation taking place at both premises.
Among the measures introduced are the role of hygiene attendant, a thermal camera taking temperatures on entry, all members and guests must sign in on arrival, bollards and signage control the flow of people throughout the venue, club furniture has been spaced apart to observe social distancing and hand sanitising stations are placed throughout the club.
"There's no denying the hospitality industry has been one of the hardest hit by COVID-19. However, during the shutdown period, with the Board's generous backing, I'm proud that we've been able to continue to support our team.
"Despite the fact that we were ordered to shut our doors on March 23, all part-time and full-time staff continued to receive their full wages until April 20f and then transitioned straight onto the JobKeeper program," Mr Richardson said.
In addition, all staff were offered free flu vaccinations, COVID-19 Infection Control Training, annual leave payments were made on top of the JobKeeper payments and online advice was provided on superannuation and health and wellbeing. Casual team members who qualified have also been engaged under the JobKeeper program.
"We're ecstatic to welcome our members back into their clubs once again and we can't thank them enough for their loyalty and support during this difficult time. We are navigating these first phases of reopening together with the health and safety of our members and team our number one priority," Mr Richardson said.
For information on opening hours and menus, visit clubcentralhurstville.com.au or clubcentralmenai.com.au