Bridge Mall Revitalisation Project hits Design Development milestone

The Bridge Mall Revitalisation Project has reached a new milestone, moving into an important Design Development phase.

This includes diverse community representatives working alongside the architects and designers from internationally renowned firm Hassell, ensuring their voices and visions are captured and integrated into the final designs.

The City of Ballarat is continuing to restore the Bridge Mall back to its role as an active part of the city – a position which it has held for decades but which has been affected by a steady retail decline, poor transport connections, physical access difficulties and changing shopping trends.

Bridge Mall will also be returned to its much-loved previous reputation as a flexible, multi-use retail destination and meeting place, but through intensive consultation and design collaboration will be transformed into a compelling and energetic hub.

The Bridge Mall’s functional design is complete, with the community asking for improved traffic movement.

Progress is underway, with visionary community voices now being included to assist in the creation of a new comfortable, inviting, and vibrant look and feel for the space.

Mayor Cr Daniel Moloney said the Design Development Phase was intended to allow for as wide a range of local voices to be heard in the future Bridge Mall design as possible.

“The functional elements of the Bridge Mall redesign have been completed, with plans to reopen the mall to slow-moving, one-way traffic,” Cr Moloney said.

“However, we need our community to contribute to how this much-loved area should look, feel and operate.

“Bridge Mall belongs to everyone. We want people back using and enjoying the spaces, exploring the laneways, and spending time. We want people shopping and eating there. We want green recreation spaces, and activity both day and night. But to do this properly we need the visionary voices of our community directly helping to shape the future of the design.”

The Design Development phase will include a series of intensive sessions between designers and architects and community representatives, ensuring the complex needs of Ballarat’s community are captured in the final round of designs.

The project is part of the $15 million Bakery Hill Urban Renewal Plan adopted by Ballarat City Council in October 2019 - one of the biggest and boldest CBD re-developments ever undertaken by Council. It is both a vital part of COVID-19 recovery and key to enabling the Ballarat CBD to thrive over coming decades.