TRUSTEES of the Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial will have a chance to present an in-depth plan for an interpretive centre at the site, after councillors voted to defer at decision at regular City of Ballarat council meeting on Wednesday, 24 November.<\/p>\n
The original officer report recommended councillors not support the centre proposed for the southern end of the Botanical Gardens, citing concerns raised by Heritage Victoria.<\/p>\n
Cr Ben Taylor said he did not have enough information to be able to vote for or against the proposal.<\/p>\n
Municipal director of development and growth Natalie Robertson said the trustees, including Bill Bahr who made a presentation to the item, had declined the chance to present an in-depth report to councillors.<\/p>\n
Mr Bahr said he presented to select City staff, including Ms Robertson and mayor Cr Daniel Moloney, however said he was not contacted about presenting to council.<\/p>\n
Cr Moloney said councillors \u201cowe it to the trustees to have as much information as they possibly can to make a judgement\u201d, and a deferral motion is the best outcome.<\/p>\n
Crs Peter Eddy, Mark Harris, Des Hudson, and Samantha McIntosh voted against the deferral, which passed five to four.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mall design approved<\/strong><\/p>\n Councillors endorsed the design package for the Bridge Mall redevelopment, as the long-running revitalisation project hit another milestone.<\/p>\n The design will see the mall reopened to traffic, a new play space built and more trees planted, all with the aim of attracting more visitors and businesses in the often maligned area.<\/p>\n Issues with pedestrian safety were raised, however director Natalie Robertson said there were measures in place, and standards would inform the final design.<\/p>\n \u201cI have to stress the intention of the officers and the consultants is to prioritise the pedestrians and cyclists,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Cr Taylor said he was \u201cvery happy\u201d to move the recommendation.<\/p>\n \u201cWe can see the amount of for lease signs there, the amount of for sale signs, people are not utilising that space so clearly it needs to be revitalised,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt needs to change, either you roof it or you road it, we made the decision to put a road through it and these are now the detailed works to take to the next level.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n One board in charge<\/strong><\/p>\n The Board of the Art Gallery of Ballarat and the Art Gallery Foundation will merge, to bring the governance of the gallery under one entity.<\/p>\n Councillors agreed that having three entities, the Board, the Foundation and the Gallery Association, had become too difficult to raise funds and have a clear strategy for the centre.<\/p>\n The City has been the only shareholder of the Board and an officers\u2019 report stated the \u201crelationship between the board and the council has not resulted in growth or promotion of the gallery or realisation of the potential of the gallery.\u201d<\/p>\n Under the new governance structure, director of the Gallery Louise Tegart will have a more \u201cstream-lined\u201d management role, according to Cr Harris.<\/p>\n The endorsed memorandum of understanding between the City and the Board will see expressions of interest open to recruit new board members.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Changes to Nerrina names<\/strong><\/p>\n Councillors agreed to rename streets and renumber several properties in Nerrina, to improve ease of locating the properties, especially for emergency services.<\/p>\n According to an officers\u2019 report, Arapiles Street is not accessible to traffic north of the intersection with Andrews Court and properties along Arapiles Street at the northern end are not easy to locate.<\/p>\n The north-south section of Guineveve Street will be renamed Raynor Street; the southernmost section of Raynor Street, which currently forms part of Nerrina Road, will be renamed Nerrina Road; and Falkirk Road will be extended to join Arapiles Street.<\/p>\n The proposal now goes for public comment and site signage will be displayed to reflect the proposed changes.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Intercultural voices sought<\/strong><\/p>\n Applications are now open for 10 intercultural ambassadors for 2022 to 2025.<\/p>\n The Intercultural Ambassador Program is designed to \u201cprovide leadership, to assist council, migrants, and the wider community in ensuring that interculturalism is a productive and positive experience.\u201d<\/p>\n Previous ambassadors helped deliver over 10 initiatives, including raising $76,000 for kids with cancer, $30,000 for the India COVID-19 appeal, 300 radio programs on Voice FM, three exhibits at the art gallery and library and 30 events delivered across Ballarat.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Library strategy passes<\/strong><\/p>\n The City of Ballarat Libraries and Learning Strategy 2022-2027 was endorsed and is available for public comment.<\/p>\n The strategy is designed to provide a vision for a \u201ccommunity focused library service that will allow for future growth in Ballarat\u201d.<\/p>\n Cr Belinda Coates said the Ballarat libraries program \u201cbats above average\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a real benchmark for inclusion and social connections for our community,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The strategy has three main priorities, reach out, branch out, and stand out; to increase library usage, expand the library network and \u201cdemonstrate regional leadership\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Contracts awarded across town <\/strong><\/p>\n Three major tenders have been awarded for the car park at Eastwood Plaza, the Buninyong Streetscape works and various asphalt repairs.<\/p>\n The carpark contract was awarded to Streebson and Ballarat Excavation & Transport for $1.47 million and includes asphalt pavement replacement, new traffic islands and trees and new line marking.<\/p>\n The Buniyong Streetscape project between Warrenheip Street and Learmonth Street was awarded to Enoch Civil for $1.08 million and is designed to improve the environment and accessibility of the village.<\/p>\n The major patch asphalt contract was awarded to Bitu-Mill for $1.26 million for four months of asphalt works of approximately 17,000 square metres of sealed roads in various locations across the municipality.<\/p>\n