Almost three years on from promising to "fast-track" redevelopment of Ballarat station's southside, the state government appears to have put the project in the too-hard basket.
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Initiated in September 2020, a masterplan guiding development and delivering a "vibrant community space" on government and private land to the south of the station - from Lydiard Street North to Peel Street North - shows no signs of being released any time soon.
There has been no update from the Victorian Planning Authority since it announced it had "paused" the process in January 2022.
The pause was to allow for "further technical investigation" into the potential relocation of the station's regional coach terminal from the southern entrance to the northern precinct.
But 17 months on, there is no evidence of any progress, with the state government this week repeating that "the project has been paused until further analysis has been done".
John Barnes of community group Save Our Station Ballarat raised the issue at a recent City of Ballarat council meeting, saying the VPA's "going silent on it" was "a funny way to fast-track something".
The council responded that "there is a draft of the Master Plan for the south side" but that "there are delays due to the complexity of reaching an outcome with all of the stakeholders involved".
"We await advice from the VPA for the outcome, however, continue to advocate for suitable development of the south side of the Ballarat Railway Station," Development and Growth Director Natalie Robertson said.
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According to the VPA's project website, preparation of the draft masterplan started in mid-2021.
The release date for public consultation remains "to be confirmed".
Mr Barnes said lack of progress was "lamentable" from both a public safety and planning point of view.
Safety issues at the existing regional coach terminal - where buses are required to reverse out into what is effectively a public thoroughfare - were yet to be addressed despite being identified as the main impetus to redevelop the station as far back as 2014.
And a multi-storey hotel/office proposal had recently been submitted to the council for approval without needing to take into account how it would best fit in with the precinct as a whole.
"Clearly, the VPA saw a need for coordinated planning for the southside precinct, and they were going to take control so it could be fast-tracked," Mr Barnes said.
"Quite the opposite has happened and it's just stalled.
"There's been no information released to the public, the City of Ballarat still has planning authority, and the VPA don't seem to be doing anything."
The Courier contacted multiple businesses in the precinct this week for their thoughts on the situation, but most were unaware a masterplan was even being developed.
Staff nevertheless commented that the "untidy" and "tired-looking" area needed attention to bring in more customers.
"We don't get a lot of foot traffic," said Lorinda Penn who's worked in the area for the past two years.
"I'm always complaining for them to beautify the block next door," said a worker at Braybrook Barrie Car Sales, which sits beside government land.
A Transport and Planning Department spokesperson told The Courier they were "working closely with the VPA, V/Line and Heritage Victoria to determine if any relocation of the coach terminal can occur without impacting the transport operations, heritage fabric of the station and any upgrades required for the upcoming Commonwealth Games."
Development of a new Conservation Management Plan was contributing to the "complexities of multiple overlapping projects," they said.
