GMAQ - Golf Management Australia Queensland Autumn 2018 | Page 14

GMAQ NEWS TOOWOOMBA GOLF CLUB’S $30 MILLION DEAL T his is the sight that will greet golfers at the entrance of Toowoomba Golf Club once the proposed $30 million, 78-apartment retirement village is complete. Jointly proposed by the Toowoomba Golf Club and retirement operator Aura Holdings, the project at Middle Ridge has been described by club president Mark Mahony as “a great outcome for the club” and one that “will go a long way to securing Toowoomba Golf Club’s future over the long term”. A development application was lodged with Toowoomba Regional Council last month. 14 I WWW.GMA.ORG.AU Aura Holdings director Mark Taylor said that if approvals came through in an orderly fashion, the project would be starting, hopefully, some time in September or October. Mr Taylor, and his business partner Tim Russell, are no strangers to the retirement industry, or Toowoomba. The pair started RetireAustralia back in 2005, and their first purchase was Drayton Villas in Toowoomba in 2006. Mr. Taylor said he and Mr. Russell had spoken to the board of the Toowoomba Golf Club about a similar project to what they were now proposing, more than a decade ago, but it had never worked out. The partners started Aura Holdings in 2016 and after approaching the club again, have now signed a deal. The proposed village will occupy the existing overflow car park and golf buggy storage area, adjacent to the ninth green and near the clubhouse and pro shop.