Councillors to hear feedback on Draft Budget 2023/24

Several Ballarat residents have elected to provide feedback on their written submissions to the Draft Budget 2023/24 directly to Councillors at a Council meeting on Wednesday evening. Councillors will also receive all written feedback from the recent draft budget consultation process at the unscheduled Council meeting.  

These actions form part of the City of Ballarat’s community consultation process and reflect Council’s commitment to ensuring the Draft Budget 2023/24 aligns with the priorities of the community.

Key strategic documents — such as the Council Plan 2021-2025 and the Community Vision 2021-2031 — have provided the foundation for the Draft Budget 2023/24, along with community consultation that was undertaken as part of the development of these documents.

Additionally, the Draft Budget 2023/24 has been prepared through a transparent process of consultation, including two rounds of public feedback:  

• A consultation period in November 2022 in which residents were given the opportunity to specify their priorities within the Council Plan, prior to the formation of the Draft Budget.
• A consultation period in May this year for residents to provide their feedback on the proposed Draft Budget 2023/24.  

Both consultation periods featured a survey on MySay and opportunities to provide verbal feedback directly to council officers both in-person and online.  

Key features of the draft budget that reflect community priorities include:  

• An increased investment in infrastructure such as roads, footpaths and drainage. This includes an allocation of $3.1 million in drainage projects across the city, $36.3 million for Capital Road Infrastructure, and doubling the Asphalting Overlay program from $1 million to $2 million.
• Significant investment in ongoing community infrastructure projects such as the restoration of Her Majesty’s Theatre, the Ballarat Library redevelopment, the Bridge Mall Redevelopment, the Sebastopol Community Hub, and the Airport Runway extension.
• An increase in resources in the City of Ballarat internal Statutory and Strategic Planning teams to keep up with the demands of Ballarat’s growth.  

The draft budget proposes no new borrowings for the 2023/24 financial year. The $129.4 million dollar capital works budget will be funded through revenue generation and existing reserves.

City of Ballarat Mayor Cr Des Hudson said community feedback was vital in informing the development of draft budgets.  

“As a Council, we have listened to what the Ballarat community has told us in previous rounds of community consultation and tried to reflect that in the Draft Budget 2023/24,” he said.  

“The Council meeting on Wednesday is an opportunity for residents that have indicated they wish to speak to us directly about their written feedback on the draft budget to be heard.” 

The unscheduled Council meeting will be held on Wednesday 7 June at 6.30pm at the Ballarat Town Hall and livestreamed via the City of Ballarat website.  

The Draft Budget 2023/24 will be presented at the scheduled June Council meeting for consideration and adoption. Residents can view the Draft Budget 2023/24 here.