The newly formed Wellard Bulls Cricket and Wellard Junior Football clubs will call Djilba Pavilion home following the pavilion’s official opening yesterday, offering families community sport closer to home.
Djilba Pavilion marks new beginnings for the area while honouring the site’s past as a traditional Aboriginal meeting place then dairy farm in the once rural context along Telephone Lane.
Mayor Peter Feasey said the $7 million project was funded by developer contributions and the City, as identified in the City’s Community Infrastructure Plan, and includes an artwork by Kwinana Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artist Tyrown Waigana that blends these histories in a fun way with a central figure as a good spirit with concentric circles symbolising ‘place’, positioned with a cow and vintage telephone.
“Djilba is about newness, the Nyoongar season recognised as the first spring, and this pavilion will serve the local community in new ways for decades to come,” Mayor Feasey said.
“It is a fitting name for a place that will support new clubs, new opportunities and new community connections and I thank all involved in the naming process including the cultural consultation that took place through the Boola Maara Aboriginal Consultative Committee.
“The pavilion features a community hall with kitchen, club room with kiosk and changerooms to support local sporting and community activities.
“We invite the community to a free AFL Grand Final screening on Saturday, 26 September from 12pm to 5:30pm at McWhirter Oval on McWhirter Promenade in Wellard.
“Take a walk through the pavilion then bring your picnic rug and chairs for an afternoon on the oval with inflatable games, activities, and a screening of The Magic Faraway Tree to follow the afternoon’s activities,’ he said.
Food trucks will also be available to purchase a treat.