State Budget spending for Geelong and the Bellarine

LABOR is talking up its 2021-22 State Budget as a plan to create jobs and give people in Geelong and the Bellarine the care they need.

The previously revealed $6.3 million for the Geelong Arts Centre to improve the visitor experience and operations during the final stage of the redevelopment is one of the largest announcements in sheer dollar terms.

Another is $2.5 million to redevelop the Point Lonsdale Surf Life Saving Club’s Beach Base facility, including creating disability accessibility to the operational areas, improved positioning of the radio and observation room, storage for local community groups and storage for rescue watercraft used for lifeguard services.

The budget investments for Geelong and the Bellarine also include:

$100 million to build new emergency department zones dedicated to children, including at University Hospital Geelong

Development planning for the Surf Coast Highway between Settlement Road and Mount Duneed Road

The expansion of the network of specialist family violence courts to include Geelong, with the court specially designed to make attending court a less daunting experience for victim-survivors, including separate entrances and exits, safe waiting areas and dedicated space for children

As part of the $3.8 billion mental health package, local early intervention services to provide a “front door” for care, with Geelong’s site among the first six to be fast tracked and set to open in 2022

Up to $275,000 to the Barwon Heads Tennis Club to support the upgrade of its facilities

A new Youth Prevention and Recovery Care (YPARC) unit – for people who need support transitioning out of acute care, or to avoid hospitalisation – for Barwon South West, as part of a $141 million investment

Introduce kinder for every three-year-old child in Geelong, with at least five funded hours a week from next year and scaling up to deliver 15 hours a week for families by 2029

$4.46 million to ensure the Great Ocean Road and surrounds are properly managed with the transfer of management to the new Great Ocean Road Coast and Parks Authority

$148.2 million to establish the Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership, including a new regional academy in Geelong, and

$47 million for the Homelessness Rough Sleeping Action Plan, including funding for outreach teams in Geelong.

“This Budget invests in the services and support that South Barwon needs, while also creating thousands of new jobs across our state,” South Barwon Labor MP Darren Cheeseman said.

“Our investments in Geelong and Surf Coast healthcare services will give families the peace-of-mind that when they need care, it will be world-class and close to home. Labor is delivering for our regional healthcare services.”