Open floor for council candidate questions

WITH City of Ballarat council elections coming up in October, a forum is planned for later this month so candidates can answer questions direct from the public.

The event is being organised by members of the Ballarat Residents and Ratepayers Association, whose president Bruce Crawford said it’s about giving everyone an opportunity to get to know their next potential councillors.

“There’s a certain amount of rumblings in the community for change so we’re hoping this’ll be an opportunity to draw some attention towards the local candidates, new and old,” he said.

“This is the first forum we’ve done and we’ve got questionnaires out to candidates as we become aware of them.

“We’ll be asking them a series of questions which will be released on the 17th after nominations close. It’s their opportunity to pitch themselves to community and it’ll be interesting to see what their priorities are.”

About ten candidates are confirmed to attend, while people will be able to submit their own questions to them via an online form.

Mr Crawford said the questions should touch on a range of issues relevant to the community.

“There’s been a number of different surveys done and obviously roads are right up there,” he said.

“There’ll be questions around that and other issues like hard waste collection, the amount we’re paying in rates and where it needs to go.

“We certainly can’t answer every question on the night which is why we’re asking for feedback for priority questions.

“It’ll be a strict agenda but if people have other questions, I’m sure the candidates will be happy to answer more questions afterwards.”

The forum will take place from 3pm on Sunday 29 September at the Bunch of Grapes Hotel on Pleasant Street. To submit questions, visit bit.ly/3AHNH6l.

Bookings are encouraged and can be done by calling the venue on 5331 4687.

Following the forum, opportunities to meet candidates are being held throughout the second week of October through the Ballarat East Neighbourhood House.

Alfredton, Wendouree, and North ward candidates will feature on Tuesday 8 October from 5.30 pm at Wendouree Neighbourhood Centre followed by Central, and Golden Point ward candidates at Barkly Square from the same time the next day, while Brown Hill ward candidates will feature the day after that at a location to be determined.