Gunnedah Shire Band can tick items off its wish list, thanks to more than $30,000 in drought funding.
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The Drought Communities Program grant will enable the band to upgrade its hall by carpeting the stage, and installing new solar panels, a new bar, and a footpath for disabled access.
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Band master Laurence Rowe said the committee was "stoked" about the funds.
"It's turned a wish list into something that's going to eventuate," he said.
"Those projects have been on our list for a long time and we were hoping we could somehow raise the money or find some way to do them, but that's an awful lot of fundraising."
Mr Rowe said the upgrades were "in keeping with the overall plan to modernise [the hall] as a function centre".
The bar upgrade is already three-quarters finished and is being undertaken by a volunteer in the band. The existing bar from 1972 is being replaced, and new cabinetry and appliances will be installed.
"We're hoping to modernise the bar so it's more appealing for people to hire the hall for functions," Mr Rowe said.
"We're taking away the 1970s look and hopefully bringing it into 2020."
It's turned a wish list into something that's going to eventuate.
- Laurence Rowe, band master
The solar panels will be a long-term cost-saver for the band and carpeting the stage will improve acoustics.
"While our band hall sounds pretty good for public performances, it's not the best place to rehearse because of the reverberations," Mr Rowe said.
Access to the hall will be improved by a new pathway connecting the roadside to an existing ramp at the back of the building.
"That's going to make it a lot easier for older and frail people to get into the band hall [because] they can't get up the stairs," Mr Rowe said.
The upgrades should get under way this month, with completion expected six weeks later.
Mr Rowe praised the drought funding initiative, saying it was "fantastic".
"It's helping a lot of community organisations that would never be able to afford to do what they're doing and it's certainly helping all the businesses and supporters," he said.
"I think it's a very successful way of helping our community."
The band is preparing for the Australian National Band Championships on the Easter weekend but the day before players leave, they will receive a special gift.
Former Gunnedah woman Marion Buckley will fly over from Perth to present the bugel of her husband, Garnet, who played in the band from 1948-1966.
"One of his wishes was for that bugel to be given to the Gunnedah band," Mr Rowe said.
The presentation and morning tea will be held at the hall on Monday, March 15 at 10.30am, with former and current band members welcome.