The Veneto Club is an Italian social club in

Bulleen Bulleen ( ) is an eastern suburb in Melbourne, Australia, 13 km north-east of the Melbourne central business district, located within the City of Manningham local government area. Bulleen recorded a population of 11,219 at the 2021 census ...

, Victoria, Australia. It was established in the late 1960s on a site in the eastern suburbs, which had become an attractive area for Italian migrants to move to from the working class inner suburbs, where they had established themselves. A substantial Brutalist style building was erected in 1972-73, to the design of the Italian émigré architect Ermin Smrekar.Adriana Nelli, 1954, Addio Trieste...The Triestine Community of Melbourne Doctor of Philosophy Victoria University 2000
/ref> Located at 191 Bulleen Road Bulleen, the Veneto Club has its origins in the 1960s during informal gatherings of some Melbourne-based ‘Veneti’ gathered for social activities including

Bocce (, or , ), sometimes anglicized as bocce ball, bocci or boccie, is a ball sport belonging to the boules family. Developed into its present form in Italy, it is closely related to British bowls and French , with a common ancestry from ancie ...

games. In 1969 a group of Italian businessmen purchased 16 acres of land in Bulleen and erected a small shed, known as ‘la Baracca’, as a shelter and informal ‘clubhouse’. On December 8, 1973, the new Smrekar-designed building, was opened by The Hon. Billy Snedden, in front of a crowd of 3000 people. The Italian Ambassador to Australia attended the opening. The site includes extensive grounds and playing fields including the David Barro Stadium, home of Victorian Premier League, tier 2 football (soccer) club

FC Bulleen Lions FC Bulleen Lions is an Australian semi-professional football club based in the Melbourne suburb Bulleen. Founded in 1974 by Melbourne's Italian community, the club currently competes in the National Premier Leagues Victoria 2, the second highe ...

. The Veneto Club has also been the venue for the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL)team the Bulleen Boomers since 1984. The History Teachers' Association of Victoria was based here in the 1990s. It has been the venue for the Italian Food and Wine Festival for several years.'Italian food festival at the Veneto Club in Bulleen on April 25' Anna Chisholm, ''Manningham Leader'', 17 April 2014
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References

{{reflist European-Australian culture in Melbourne Italian-Australian culture in Melbourne Clubs and societies in Australia Italian restaurants in Australia Buildings and structures in the City of Manningham Buildings and structures completed in 1973 Brutalist architecture in Australia 1960s establishments in Australia Organisations based in Melbourne