Council votes on Sturt Street precinct plan, rate freeze bid fails: Ballarat's week in city politics

Ballarat City Council voted 7-4 on Wednesday night to endorse a revised urban design framework for the Sturt Street heritage precinct, green-lighting a planning process that will shape how new development sits alongside the Victorian-era streetscape between Lydiard Street and Armstrong Street North. The framework, which has been under community consultation since February, sets height limits of four storeys on the precinct's eastern boundary and mandates facade setback requirements for any new build within 50 metres of the Town Hall.

The vote came at a moment when property prices across regional Victoria are softening, making the planning parameters more consequential than they might have been 18 months ago. Developers who had been banking on looser controls will now face tighter design briefs, but the council's planning directorate argued the framework protects long-term land values by keeping the precinct's tourist drawcard intact. Sovereign Hill drew 432,000 visitors in the 2024-25 financial year, and the broader Ballarat CBD — anchored by the Sturt Street boulevard — remains the economic corridor that feeds hospitality and retail off that foot traffic.

Rate freeze motion rejected, but infrastructure commitments survive the budget review

A motion from Cr. Doug Carlson's bloc to freeze the 2026-27 general rate at the 2025-26 level was defeated 6-5, ending a fortnight of lobbying from small business owners along Bridge Mall who had argued the cumulative three-year rate rise of 14.2 percent was unsustainable given declining foot traffic. The majority instead backed the draft budget's 3.8 percent rate increase, which officers said was necessary to fund $6.1 million in road resurfacing across the inner north — including sections of Drummond Street and Doveton Street North — and to keep the Ballarat Health Services infrastructure co-contribution on track.

That co-contribution is $4.3 million over three years, part of the council's commitment alongside the state government's $280 million capital investment at Ballarat Base Hospital, where the new surgical and critical care tower is scheduled to open in late 2027. Councillors who backed the rate rise pointed to that figure repeatedly during debate, framing the increase as unavoidable if Ballarat was to hold its end of the funding agreement.

Separately, council confirmed it had received a $740,000 state grant through the Regional Tourism Infrastructure Fund for upgrades to the Ballarat Botanical Gardens visitor infrastructure, including accessible pathways around the statuary precinct near Gillies Street. Works are expected to begin by October, ahead of the spring tourist season.

Civic Hall roof decision ends two years of patching

The other significant resolution from Wednesday concerns the Civic Hall on Sturt Street, where a structural engineering report tabled in May found the east wing roof requires full replacement rather than further interim repairs. Council approved a $1.85 million contract award to a Geelong-based building firm, with work to start in August and the venue to remain closed to hirers until at least November. The Ballarat Regional Arts organisation, which uses the Civic Hall for approximately 30 events per year, has been offered priority rebooking rights for the December-January period.

The roof issue has been a running sore in council chambers since 2024, when emergency patching cost $230,000 and still left the hall unusable during heavy rain. The full replacement was deferred twice while officers sought competitive tenders; the eventual contract came in $190,000 under the engineers' estimate.

The next ordinary council meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, 5 August. Residents who want to address the chamber on any of these matters — the Sturt Street framework in particular remains open to written submissions through the formal planning process — can register through the council's YourSay Ballarat portal before 22 July. The planning scheme amendment that flows from the framework will require a separate public exhibition period of at least 28 days before any final adoption.