Have your say on public spaces and car-parking in Ballarat

18 April 2023 8:38am

Consultation has commenced to gather information from Ballarat residents on future use of the city’s central public spaces.

The City of Ballarat wants to know feedback on current parking in Ballarat and how the city’s outdoor spaces are activated to help assist future planning for items such as the paid parking system and outdoor dining opportunities.

Outdoor activations

Outdoor dining seeks to enhance the public realm and encourage more pedestrians, visitors and customers to the area in order to benefit business and the wider precinct.

New outdoor activation spaces that have been recently constructed include;

- Dining area at Sturt Street east.

- Dining area at the 400 block of Sturt Street.

- Decking and large screen at Alfred Deakin Place.

- Extended outdoor dining area at McKenzie Street.

- Extended outdoor dining areas on Armstrong Street North.

- Glass wind protection barriers and umbrella sockets in more than 80 venues across Ballarat.

There are many benefits to improving public spaces, these include;

- Improvements to physical and mental health.

- Enhancing community wellbeing.

- Reducing crime and making the city safer.

- Supporting the local economy and visitor economy.

- Improving pedestrian safety and increasing the use of non-vehicle based transport.

City of Ballarat Councillor Ben Taylor said we’ve seen outdoor dining work well in areas like Armstrong Street.

“This is an opportunity to potentially increase the vibrancy of other areas across central Ballarat and address pedestrian congestion by extending dining and public spaces,” he said.

“Outdoor dining can create vibrant streetscapes, where people gather, the area feels exciting and draws you to return. This can often come at the cost of parking spaces, which are instead turned into places for people to gather.

“This consultation allows Ballarat to consider things that are important to them, such as a park outside their destination or a park a few blocks away.”

Car parking in the CBD

The City of Ballarat’s current paid parking system allows for flexibility, catering for the different needs of the whole community and provides a balance for customers and businesses.

According to the City of Ballarat’s parking data, currently between the hours of 9am and 5.30pm 80 per cent of cars parked in the CBD stay in their park for less than an hour and 20 per cent park for more than an hour.

It is free to park for one hour or less in a metered space.

Out of the 69 available bays in the Armstrong Street North area, approximately two of these are occupied for more than three hours on any given day.

The high turnover in this parking area indicates people are using the car spaces to pop in and out of the hospitality and retail venues, while those wishing to linger longer during the day are parking a block or two away.

To encourage drivers to rotate more regularly outside normal business hours, the consultation will ask, is it necessary to extend the current paid parking restrictions to a later time, such as 7:00pm?

To have your say

Visit the City of Ballarat’s Mysay page and complete either the short or extended survey to provide your feedback on the city’s car parking and outdoor activations.

Community members can complete a specific survey, whilst businesses are encouraged to complete a separate business survey. The survey will be open until 2 May 2023.