The year on which I am reporting has been characterised by two major features. One is that we've seen a great deal of refurbishment and physical change going on around us, resulting, for example, in the imposing edifice of an external lift being raised behind our building, landscaping and upgrading of thoroughfares around us, and some important refurbishment taking place on the first floor of the Club itself. This left your Committee wondering about the potential impact of the upheavals, noise and dislocation on the use - and more importantly enjoyment - of the Club. Fortunately, and thanks to the sterling work of our Manager and the other members of the Club's staff, we as members have experienced a certain temporary impact on the quality of the Club's facilities, but there has been no sign of a slump in the use of these by the Club's members. Our sincere thanks go to Tom and his staff for having absorbed such a degree of the stress and strain of these physical changes, and having done so much to shield the membership from the impact of these. Perhaps the most dramatic evidence of this was during the recent flooding experienced on and around Hughes Plaza, when, despite the chaos around them, members of staff for some time remained on duty and ready to handle custom on a (usually) busy Friday. The second broad feature of the past year, and which will be developed in our Honorary Treasurer's report, has been the continuation of the trend towards a financial consolidation of the Club's life. It has been some years since we have experienced such a solid financial platform to work from, and despite the physical disruption (and potential loss of trade) we have experienced in the past six months or so, we have maintained the heartening financial trend. In great part this has been the result of a marked increase in the number, and size, of major functions held at the Club; another trend we would like to encourage in the coming year.
A further important dimension of the Club's life I would like to highlight is the growing presence of our Postgraduate Student members. Membership forms have continued to flow in in increasing numbers and the presence of this section of our Club's community has had an important, and most welcome, impact on its nature. Vitality and enthusiasm are important features of any organisation, and we have certainly enjoyed a very great 'shot in the arm' from our student members. Anyone who comes in regularly on a Friday evening will recognise what I mean here. Our thanks go to our Postgraduate Students' Association for their involvement in Club life, and to the University's, and most notably to Deputy Vice- Chancellor (Research) Professor Neville Marsh's office's, continued recognition that in supporting our postgraduate students with such a fine facility, the University of Adelaide sets itself apart so positively from many, if not most, of the other universities around the state and, indeed, the country as a whole, in terms of the quality of life its students enjoy on campus.
The Vice-Chancellor, and the University, are to be thanked for one other major contribution to our life: through their generous financial support, the upper level of the Club has been rejuvenated: the Vice-Chancellors' Room (especially) and Hoods Room have been tastefully redecorated, with important pieces of art being loaned to us to decorate the walls of the facilities on the First Floor, mercifully removing images of tabletops and serpents. In so doing, the University has renewed its recognition of the importance of the Club at the very heart of its life.
The number of instances of votes of thanks in this report suggests that our Club is fortunate enough to have a variety of sectors of its own organisation, and the University community's as a whole, pulling for it. This indicates, in turn, that we are fulfilling an important function within the University of Adelaide. If re-elected, I trust I will be able to report in a similarly positive fashion at our next AGM! In the meantime, let me also thank the other members of the Committee (and notably our Treasurer, Paquita Bulbeck) for their excellent work on behalf of the Club.
Our immediate goals? Attention to the fraying environment of our terrace and garden, which is the first priority in the coming year. By completing this, we will have entirely (and relatively painlessly) upgraded the physical environment of the club since we first embarked on this process in 2003.
Felix Patrikeeff
(Chair)
26 May 2005
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