City of Ballarat Councillors 2014 (from Left to Right): Cr Peter Innes, Cr Amy Johnson, Cr John Burt, Mayor of Ballarat Cr Joshua Morris, Deputy Mayor Cr Des Hudson, Cr Belinda Coates, Cr Vicki Coltman, Cr Samantha McIntosh, Cr John Philips.

Ballarat is one of Australia’s most iconic cities and it is with great pride that I serve my first term as the city’s Mayor.

I am a life-long Ballarat resident and I consider myself very lucky to have grown up here. I have wonderful childhood memories of Ballarat, and I have great pleasure sharing these experiences with my own young children.

The Ballarat I grew up with is still at the heart of this great city. It is a city of families and friends, neighbourhoods and local groups. It is home to a proud history and iconic heritage.

Ballarat is also one of Australia’s fastest growing, most progressive regional centres. It is a thriving city with world-class services and facilities, attracting major developments and investment in Ballarat.

With an innovative vision for the next 30 years, the most exciting chapter in Ballarat’s history is about to be written.

Cr Joshua Morris
Mayor of Ballarat

Ballarat – A great Australian city

With a population of 93,500 people (Australian Census, 2011), Ballarat is the regional capital of western Victoria.

Ballarat is a thriving regional centre serving 400,000 people. It offers premium job opportunities, world-class education, affordable housing, exciting restaurants and retail options, accessible community services, beautiful heritage, and a great lifestyle for all.

History of Ballarat- The Wathaurung people were the first inhabitants of the 740 square kilometre area that makes up the municipality of the City of Ballarat.

Ballarat’s history changed forever in 1851, when prospectors John Dunlop and James Regan found gold at Poverty Point. In the year after the pair’s discovery of a few ounces of gold while panning in the Canadian Creek, 20,000 diggers worked the goldfields hoping to find their fortune.

The city and its gold were at the centre of one of the most important moment’s in Australia’s history. The December 1854 uprising at Eureka was prompted by gold miners’ anger at Government mining licences. When Government soldiers stormed a stockade built by the miners, 30 miners and six troopers were killed. Within six months, new laws were passed aimed at giving miners a better deal, with miners licences abolished and replaced by new miners rights. The rebellion and its consequences are considered a pivotal moment in Australian Democracy.

Ballarat has a rich and living heritage. Of Victorian municipalities, the City of Ballarat ranks equal third on the list of the most locally protected heritage places, with 64 listed heritage places on the Victorian Heritage Register, a number of places listed on the Victorian Heritage Inventory and one heritage place on the National Heritage List (Eureka Stockade).

Visit Ballarat- The Ballarat region is one of Australia’s premier tourism destinations, with domestic and international visitor numbers on the rise.

The iconic Sturt Street is a stunning tree-lined boulevard, with notable statues and monuments on every block of the city’s CBD, and Lydiard Street, with a perfectly preserved heritage streetscape, is world-famous as a film setting.

In Ballarat, history comes to life. Home of Australia’s most famous insurrection, the 1854 Eureka Rebellion heralded the birth of democracy. Visitors walk through history following the Eureka Trail and explore the world famous Sovereign Hill, an open-air museum recreating the Ballarat Goldfields of the 1850s.

Arts and culture have a vibrant and exciting home in Ballarat. Established in 1884, the Art Gallery of Ballarat was the country’s first regional gallery and today houses the nation’s largest and most impressive collection of Australian art, and Her Majesty’s Theatre is Australia’s oldest continuously operating purpose-built theatre.

World-class tourist attractions include Ballarat Botanical Gardens, Ballarat Wildlife Park, Ballarat Bird World and the Gold Museum.

Visitors spend time at Ballarat’s beautifully-restored Lake Wendouree, the Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial and Prime Minister’s Avenue. Cycling and walking trails take travellers though the picturesque landscape of the Ballarat region.

In January, thousands of cycling enthusiasts line the streets of Ballarat and Mount Buninyong to cheer the competitors of the Mars Cycling Australia Road National Cycling Championships. Community events including the Ballarat Begonia Festival and Ballarat Heritage Weekend, attract large crowds of residents and visitors. Other popular events include the inaugural Ballarat Beer Festival and the Australian Masters Rowing Championships at Lake Wendouree were popular events.