A LOCATION has been decided on a planned public art memorial for survivors of sexual assault.<\/p>\n
City of Ballart councillors approved the choice of site last week during their regular meeting, with the monument set for Victoria Park, near a small lake just off Plane Avenue.<\/p>\n
The municipality will allocate $520,000 from its public art program for the memorial and hope the remainder of the expected $1.5 million total cost will come from other levels of government.<\/p>\n
First mooted in 2016, in part as a response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, Cr Belinda Coates said the slower pace of planning has benefited the project.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn retrospect, I\u2019m glad we didn\u2019t rush into something smaller earlier on, because whilst the process has been pretty lengthy it\u2019s been a really deep and engaging community process,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s become apparent that it\u2019s really important for people to feel seen and heard and believed and supported and it aligns so well with our stance as a compassionate city as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The project is being guided by the Continuous Voices Community Reference Group with designs based on workshops with survivors.<\/p>\n
Work on the memorial expected be completed by 2025.<\/p>\n
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Budget feedback received<\/strong><\/p>\n Following public release in April, residents were invited to provide feedback on the 2022\/23 draft budget.<\/p>\n Six submissions were presented to council, and environmental concerns proved a hot topic with BREAZE president Mary Debrett urging that five per cent of the budget be allocated towards climate change prevention.<\/p>\n \u201cI just think everything that\u2019s being done to meet the actions of the carbon neutrality zero emissions action plan need to be accelerated,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Cr Amy Johnson commended the environmental input, and said more could be done.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve had some great advocates on council as far as the need for action on climate change,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve come a fair way over the last couple of council terms but there is still more to do.\u201d<\/p>\n Another suggestion called for more support for field hockey, which one speaker said was integral for the sport\u2019s continued expansion in the region.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Gardens to get new plan<\/strong><\/p>\n A refresh of the Ballarat Botanical Gardens Master Plan has been approved following the completion of stage two landscaping works on northern the lakeside entrance, and Gothic fernery building.<\/p>\n The municipality will provide $250,000 for the overall project and Cr Mark Harris said a new plan was much needed.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of us in Ballarat have been sick of it. You go up there and it\u2019s just not finished at the front,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need that area finished basically so it directs people to the gardens and it\u2019s got some sense of totality around it.\u201d<\/p>\n The original master plan has been in place since 1995, and work on the new document is expected to be completed in the next 12 months.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Truck concerns raised<\/strong><\/p>\n Following recent truck incidents in Buninyong\u2019s town centre, South Ward councillors advocated the City lobby the State Government to develop road safety measures like signage and heavy vehicle diversions in the area.<\/p>\n Cr Ben Taylor said with the town\u2019s main shopping strip located at the bottom of a hill, this issue is not new.<\/p>\n \u201cOver the years, there\u2019s been a lot of near misses and there\u2019s been a lot of concern by community,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe problem is\u2026 there\u2019s a mountain right at the top where the trucks come straight down, and they come through with no visual signage to say slow down.\u201d<\/p>\n Mayor Cr Daniel Moloney said there is a need for a long-term traffic plan for the city and that some of the solutions are immediately feasible.<\/p>\n \u201cSome of this long-term planning and some of it is some incredibly high dollars but there\u2019s also some really quick fixes that can come out of this solution,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n