Council bogged down in toilet talk – City of Ballarat council meeting briefs

CITY of Ballarat councillors voted during their regular council meeting on Wednesday, 22 February to demolish an underground toilet block at Lake Wendouree nearly two years after the site’s closure.

Opened in 1960, the toilet was condemned in mid-2021 after asset reports declared it unfit for modern safety, accessibility, and gender equity standards.

The motion was passed following two rejected alternatives from Crs Daniel Moloney and Amy Johnson who both argued the demolition should be delayed.

Cr Moloney said a more informed decision could be made once the municipality’s new public toilet strategy is adopted later this year, which is aimed at guiding the construction of new facilities.

“I do want to see what the alternative would actually be. The toilet strategy will answer that question,” he said. “It was a decision taken back in 2017 to defer demolition of the toilets.

“I don’t really see the big deal of waiting three, four more months to get a complete picture as to what will ultimately go there.”

The demolition of the toilets would cost $80,000 with either options of renovating the site or building new ones costing between $300,000 to $350,000.

With the site’s fate undecided for years, mayor Cr Des Hudson spoke against Cr Moloney’s motion, saying their lack of resolution was slowing down the bureaucratic process.

“We are our own worst enemy at times in bogging down the organisation and its failure to deliver. This particular toilet block is condemned and… will never be opened,” he said.

“This should have been a pretty clear decision. The strategy does not rely on us being able to resolve this issue.”

Cr Moloney’s motion was lost with three votes in favour including from himself and Cr Mark Harris.

Cr Johnson’s failed alternative asked for a report to be brought to councillors this month on options for building a new toilet block at the site.

It was voted against by Crs Ben Taylor, Belinda Coates, Tracey Hargreaves, and the mayor, with the latter saying the motion was lost on the deciding vote of the chair.

The same councillors voted for the move to demolish the toilets.

 

Tender awarded

Developer CIQ Construction Management has been awarded the contract to build the Alfredton Community Hub for nearly $6.5 million.

The site is expected to house community centres and a nearly-100 place kindergarten, and Cr Moloney said it will be a benefit to the city.

“It’s recognition of a growing community,” he said. “It’s buildings that can sometimes create a focal point for people to get together.

“I’ve seen this happen even at Djila-tjarriu, the big park that forms part of the Ballymanus growth area.

“The need for a community hub especially offering kinder services particular to a young, growing population are important.”

The funds for the hub are coming from the City and its Ballarat West Development Contributions Plan as well as more than $2 million from the State Government.

 

Tourism alliance

Councillors voted to endorse a new visitor economy partnership between the City of Ballarat and other local governments.

The initiative would see the municipality working with Golden Plains, Moorabool, Pyrenees and Hepburn shires to maximise resources in delivering visitor attractions.

Cr Taylor said the partnership would boost the region’s profile.

“Even though we have some great events, we still have the opportunity to do better,” he said.

“We’ve got the Bendigos and the Geelongs of the world that are taking visitors and we’re not getting those visitors so we need to look at how we do this better.

“This is the first step.”

The partnered entity is to be called Central Highlands Tourism with the City of Ballarat to enter into it through a $30,000 membership fee.

With funding for Victorian Goldfields Tourism ending last year, Ballarat Regional Tourism was established as an interim body. Should the partnership form, BRT will cease to exist from the start of July.

Cr Hudson noted the partnership would not limit the municipality from similar initiatives with other cities like Melbourne and Bendigo.

 

Pathway purchased

Land owned by the municipality is set to go to Ballarat Clarendon College following a nearly unanimous vote for the acquisition.

The College will take control of a public pathway connecting Murray Street to Sturt Street, with the aim of closing it off at the Ajax Street intersection.

Kaufmann Property Consultants’ Michael Kaufmann brought a submission for the motion, and said the acquisition is part of Clarendon College’s plan to keep traffic away from the school.

“One of the key components of removing traffic from the local residential network was removing the existing pickup/drop-off area at the corner of Ajax Street,” he said.

Cr Coates was the only one to vote against the motion, saying she was opposed to public land being closed off.

“It was agreed back in the day to remain public access in perpetuity,” she said.

“The majority of councillors did actually oppose it initially on the basis that very long-term residents in that area, it does impact on their walkability and liveability.”

The plan to sell the land will go for public comment before being the decision is brought back to council.

 

Bon voyage!

Two overseas trips are in the calendar this year for members of the municipality with the aim of maintaining Ballarat’s international relationships.

2023 marks the 35th anniversary of the City of Ballarat’s sister city establishment with Japan’s Inagawa and 20th friendship anniversary with Timor Leste in Ainaro.

To mark the occasions, a maximum delegation of Cr Hudson, an Ainaro committee councillor representative, and one council officer will be appointed to visit Timor Leste.

Cr Hudson, another councillor, two officers and CEO Evan King will form the maximum group for the Inagawa trip.

The motion was passed unanimously, with Cr Hudson saying the relationships fostered between the cities will be worth the travel.

“It is a small proportion of our budget but the goodwill we’re able to generate and taking our place,” he said.

“If we’re in it, we’re in it and do it well than just being a tokenistic issue.”

The cost for both trips is estimated to be more than $50,000.

 

A pipeline for future growth

Nearly $2 million will be taken from the municipality’s Developer Contributions Reserve funds to install drainage as part of the Ballarat West Precinct Structure Plan.

Cr Taylor said the readied cash will help the municipality “get ahead of the game” in preparing the pipeline for the city’s western growth.

“This is actually an expansion of drainage in that area as growth has happened,” he said.

“It’s always good to assess and that’s what’s being done by officers, to go back and assess, look at the strategy around the water, how it’s flowing, what catchment do we need?”