Fire to old Clubhouse: Update on Progress

Dear Members

This is an update on where Milnerton Golf Club is currently with regard to the fire which took place in the Old Clubhouse on the evening of 17^th February 2022.

The management committee appointed a sub-committee to deal with the disaster. This disaster sub-committee consists of the President, Hon Treasurer, General Manager and myself.

We have two insurers involved – one for the building itself and another for the contents of the building.

• 18^th February the assessors for both the buildings and contents were on site to carry out their inspections and report back to insurers. City of CTN Building Inspector also visited the site on the same day and issued a safety notice. We opened a separate Cost File to record all expenses incurred whilst the building is returned to its original state.
• 22^nd February a Fire Forensics expert visited the site and produced a report which went directly to the insurers. On the same day a Structural Engineer visited the site, declared the building safe and submitted his report to the insurers. Bunting tape has been erected around the building to keep people away from the area, in accordance with City of CTN requirements. The removal of the Asbestos (roofing) and all of the other rubble in the building has been authorised by MGC and we expect the work to begin 18^th of March.

Golf Carts:

All 35 of our own fleet of golf carts were destroyed along with 36 chargers. We realise that without golf cars to rent to players we will lose income from golf rounds as well. We have therefore rented 20 Golf Carts from E-Z-GO and renovated the rear of the old clubhouse to house them. All of the renovations are compliant with regulations.

Ordering of replacement golf carts has its own problems and choices. There is an 11-month waiting period on new golf carts and about a 3 – 4 months waiting period on refurbished carts from our current supplier. There is a large monetary difference and we are weighing up the options currently.

Regarding our Private members carts damaged as a result of the fire, our Legal Advisor has responded to a first claim from a member indicating that MGC cannot be held responsible for such damages. We shall deal with further claims on an individual basis.

What will happen to the shell of the old clubhouse?

We have met with an architect (member) who shared his vision with us. We agree that the old clubhouse will not be rebuilt as it was. A temporary structure for additional Rental Golf Carts could be built on the site but no finality has been reached on this proposal. Costs and aesthetics are just two of the pertinent factors involved.

As of 12noon on 18^th March we have not heard from either of the two insurance companies regarding a decision to pay us out or NOT to pay us out.

There was some delay in the forensic report getting to the company insuring the contents but not from our side. We are putting pressure on them as the volatile Rand/Dollar exchange rate will influence the cost of replacement carts and we’d like to be in the best possible position before placing orders.

What we have learned from this fire is that Electrical Certificates of Compliance for buildings is of utmost importance, and we have instituted an audit of all of our other buildings on the property. (The Old Clubhouse did have an Electrical CoC for the particular area where the fire started). I suggest that all members check whether their personal insurances require them to have Electrical CoC’s for their properties!

The clearing and rebuilding process is not a quick-fix and the road ahead will be accompanied by more updates from the Captain’s desk.

NOTE: The MGC AGM is on 29^th March. Make your X count by attending and voting.

Yours sincerely,

Colin Jacobs
Club Captain