An old Orange gem is being brought back to life.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
The city will soon have a large-scale function centre up and running again, with a full revamp on the cards for the old Turner's Function Centre.
Set to be dubbed Banksia Orange, the rebadged venue will be run by Union Bank's general manager and kitchen boss, engaged couple Sarah Crowley and Dom Aboud.
The site off the Mitchell Highway hasn't been operational for about six years.
"We couldn't believe this space had sat dormant for this long, so we were pretty excited when the opportunity came up," Miss Crowley said.
"There's been a real gap in the market with people coming to us and wanting our Union Bank style for bigger functions, and we absolutely love hosting and organising events.
"We're constantly having to turn people away due to limited venue space and capacity, so this is going to be extremely exciting for Orange."
Kicking off the first event, the new Banksia Orange venue will play host to 300 gig-goers on September 23.
Catering for the 2023 Orange Business Awards, president Dan Sutton said having an illustrious spot has been a much-desired necessity for the community.
"The opportunity here is phenomenal to bring back large-scale awards events where it's a prestige-style centre, which this will be," Mr Sutton said.
"We wanted something different and we needed a new location for our business community, something we haven't had for many years now.
We couldn't believe this space had sat dormant for this long ... this is going to be extremely exciting for Orange.
- Union Bank's general manager, Sarah Crowley on Turner's takeover.
"This new function centre will undoubtedly be host to the best awards that Orange has seen in a very, very long time."
Which Mr Aboud echoed, bringing a relished challenge the pro chef is more than ready to sink his teeth into.
With painting starting next week and a (still secret) menu already finalised, the UB crew will be all stations go.
"We've got a whole team who love being in the thick of it which makes it all the less daunting," Mr Aboud said.
"There are some good people who make us run well, and we're looking forward to making sure this space runs as well as it possibly can; and as well as it rightfully should."
Both UB head honchos said they'll "test drive" some 50-person events with close friends and family first.
They'll go higher in catering numbers with each trial run until it's nailed.
"We'll have a Lebanese banquet format with 100 [people] in the space, maybe aim for 200 with a soft-opening media night," Mr Aboud said.
"Eventually we'll work our way up to that 300 mark, with large corporate functions and formal events. We'll be able to invite them in for a night and say 'hey, come and have a look at what we're doing here, because it's pretty great'."
Reading this on mobile web? Download our news app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you alerts for breaking news as it happens. Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.
