Council to spend $60k to revise station masterplan, draft budget reveals

The ongoing saga of the former La Trobe Street saleyards has been up in the air for years, but was highlighted in the fall out of the 2026 Commonwealth Games, as it had been flagged as a possible location for the athletes village which would in turn become housing.

The former saleyards has also caused controversy over who would be responsible for footing the bill for decontamination.

There was also a barrier around the King's Caveat, where the site could only be used for livestock trade, but was removed in mid-2023.

After the Commonwealth Games was cancelled, an athletes village was clearly no longer needed, however the government did announce $1 billion for housing in regional Victoria without clarifying where.

In September 2023, the council stated it was still working with the state government over the site and there was no word on if the site would be used for much-needed housing.

City of Ballarat development and growth director Natalie Robertson said the site had been identified as a key part of the Urban Renewal Precinct in the Ballarat Housing Strategy and the Industrial Land Strategy.

"A structure plan for the wider La Trobe Street Precinct will commence in 2024-25, with a view to incorporate a new vision for the old saleyards site and to provide strategic support for alternative land uses for the broader precinct. This might include supporting a shift towards more sensitive land uses such as residential and commercial opportunities," she said.

"The structure plan will also support locally significant light industrial activity, with new guidelines that improve amenity outcomes for a changing neighbourhood."

The council allocated $50,000 to the project in the draft 2024-25 budget.

Another long awaited project is the Wendouree Station Masterplan.

In the draft 2024-25 budget, the council has committed $60,000 to the next step in the plan.

Ms Robertson said the next step was to "revise the 2019 Wendouree Station Masterplan."

"Implementation of the Wendouree Station Master Plan will support alternative land uses such as public open space, retail, commercial and residential that capitalises on the prime location in proximity to services and public transport," she said

"Implementation of the master plan will also and to ensure industrial land adjacent to the Wendouree Station can strategically support higher density opportunities."

The masterplan from 2019 included a new public plaza with commercial shopping, as well as additional train commuter car parking.

A new bus interchange and eventually a multi-storey car park would also be built on the south side of the precinct under the plan, and City of Ballarat would encourage a "range of land uses to ensure activation and passive surveillance of the precinct including new retail, commercial and residential offerings".

Councillors called the plan "ambitious" and only just passed in council chambers with a 4-3 vote back in October 2019.

Since then, the Wendouree Train Station has been upgraded as a part of the Ballarat Line Upgrade.