Mayors Message

With Ballarat Heritage Weekend just around the corner, I think it’s very  fitting to talk to you this week about our past.

Over May 25-26 we will welcome thousands of visitors who travel to our beautiful city to take part in Ballarat Heritage Weekend, where they can immerse themselves in the stories of our past.

This year, in addition to celebrating our iconic streetscapes and gold rush history, we’re also focussing on celebrating the history, cultures and stories of Ballarat’s Aboriginal peoples.

Take a look online at ballaratheritageweekend.com to see all this year’s festival highlights.

Then, from June 2 to 5, I will be attending the 15th World Congress of the Organization of World Heritage Cities in Krakow, along with our Coordinator Heritage and Cultural Landscapes Susan Fayad, who will be presenting at the congress.

The invitation to attend this event clearly recognises Ballarat’s leadership role, along with the City of Bendigo, within the 13 Central Highlands councils in their bid to achieve a UNESCO World Heritage listing for the Central Victorian Gold elds region.

This listing has been estimated to boost the region’s economy by $68 million annually – that is an incredible  gure.

In fact, it is estimated that for every one per cent increase in tourism in the Central Victorian Goldfields region, $11 million would be added to the regional economy.

Ballarat and Bendigo are leading a coalition which represents close to half a million people spread over almost 40,000 square kilometres, or 17 per cent of the state.

It is therefore important for a sizeable part of Victoria that we are represented at this congress.

Already, the nine councils involved in a successful World Heritage listing of the Cornwall West Devon Mining Landscape have leveraged more than 90 million pounds of new investment in the area.

But leveraging a UNESCO World heritage listing to achieve these bene ts locally requires a level of international engagement.

Comparative sites that have achieved World Heritage listing have seen major economic and social benefits and this would be a major platform for Central Goldfields renewal and long-term prosperity.

It will also allow the City of Ballarat to gain exposure to new World Heritage networks, advocate for UNESCO Creative Cities Network membership and learn about key sustainable tourism insights.

I will be a strong advocate for our UNESCO World Heritage listing, and I intend to keep lobbying until we have achieved our goal.