Fears for future of vital Warrawong centre as demolition date looms

The manager of Warrawong Residents Forum has secured a temporary premises to occupy once the centre is demolished to make way for a new community centre and library, but does not have the money to fit out the site and make it suitable for the services his organisation provides.

WRF has to be out of the existing building by the end of June.

This month Mr Castro found out his application for an infrastructure grant through the Office of Responsible Gambling to fit out the new space - just around the corner from the existing centre - was unsuccessful.

WRF provides a range of services to some of the region's most vulnerable people, ranging from mental health services, drug and alcohol support and Centrelink assistance to emergency food relief, free meals and laundry services.

"To make the new premises suitable, we urgently need to fit out with partitioned rooms for confidential services, shelving for food, and seating for meals, as well as basic amenities such as air-conditioning, hand-washing facilities, and security systems," he said.

Mr Castro said this would cost $180,000, after the landlord of the temporary premises agreed to upgrade the bathroom and kitchenette.

Wollongong City Council will cover the rent of the temporary site.

Just to get to this point was a long road: Mr Castro said he had been trying to get government support for the organisation's relocation since at least September 2022.

He said being unable to fit out the temporary lodgings put another grant worth $20,000 from the federal government's Stronger Communities program at risk.

This grant was provided to buy such appliances as a freezer, a refrigerated display case and other items needed for the community lunch program, but Mr Castro said it had to be spent and operating within a certain time frame to meet the funding contract.

Already, that is on its fourth extension.

With the clock ticking, Mr Castro is turning to the community and local businesses in the hope that they can donate to bring the outstanding work needed to fruition, launching a campaign called 'Keep the Heart of Warrawong Beating'.

The suburb is one of the most socioeconomically disadvantaged parts of the Illawarra and WRF, a tiny organisation in which Mr Castro is the only full-time paid staff member, punches above its weight in what it delivers, providing food services alone to more than 1000 people each month.

Mr Castro said the centre was a safety plan for some people in unsafe situations, because he or other people would notice if they didn't show up; for those who were isolated, it was somewhere they could go for companionship.

He said WRF's services also provided the kind of early intervention that improved education outcomes and rates of youth crime and domestic violence.

Mr Castro worries that if WRF has to cease delivering its services, it will be another blow to the community.

"Just a vulnerable community that doesn't need another back turned on them, because that is what this would be," he said.

An Office of Responsible Gambling (ORG) spokesperson said the infrastructure grant program's December round was "highly competitive with an impressive range of high-quality submissions", with over 450 submissions of which 45 were successful.

ORG is unable to provide information on why Mr Castro's application was unsuccessful, as the agency only discusses individual applications with the applicants.

A Wollongong council spokesperson said the council was working with tenants of the existing community centre to ensure their services continued.

"All three tenants, including the Warrawong Residents Forum, will receive funding from council to access alternative arrangements while council works on the new Southern Suburbs Community Centre and Library," they said.

For more information on the WRF campaign, visit wrf.org.au.