Message from the Mayor | ourballarat summer 2023-24

It is an honour to be re-elected as Mayor of the City of Ballarat and to lead our Council team for the final year of this term. What an exciting summer we have ahead of us in the city, as highlighted in this edition of ourballarat.

With the weather beginning to warm up, I’m looking forward to a fantastic summer filled with events right here in Ballarat. 

From Spilt Milk, which attracts thousands of visitors to our city, to Summer Sundays in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens, there’s something for everyone. You’ll find a calendar of events of the summer period – why not invite your friends or family from out of town to experience everything Ballarat has to offer?

Discover how the City of Ballarat works with local authorities to prepare the municipality for the upcoming fire season. You’ll meet some members of the City of Ballarat’s Emergency Management team and learn about the City of Ballarat’s role in fire prevention and during emergency events.  

You’ll read the truly remarkable story of Ukranian-born, Ballarat-based artist Tamara Bekier. Having experienced tremendous hardship in Europe following the Second World War, Tamara uses her artistic practice to process her experiences. If you haven’t already seen it, I’d encourage you to visit Tamara’s exhibition before it closes at the end of January. 

Throughout this edition, you’ll also read about the team behind the Victoria Street Gardens, the new-look Ageing Well Services team and what life is like as a School Crossing Supervisor at the City of Ballarat.

Finally, I’d like to thank everyone who contributed to the recent community engagement on the ourballarat magazine. 

With almost 500 survey postcards received, along with about 30 online submissions, it’s been great to see so many providing input into the direction of the magazine going forward. Council officers are currently collating the survey responses and preparing to conduct some focus groups based on those results. The City of Ballarat will ensure the community is updated on this process as the project progresses.

Lastly, I want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas, a happy New Year and a safe holiday period.

- Mayor Cr Des Hudson