Grange Planning Brain

title: Growth Areas Framework Plan — Western & North Western Growth Areas council: ballarat state: vic category: growth-area classification: MAJOR status: adopted last_compiled: 2026-04-16 source_docs:

  • growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt
  • ballarat-growth-areas-framework-plan-2024.txt
  • 14-august-2024-planning-delegated-committee-meeting-agenda-with-attachments.txt
  • ballarat-igaf.txt
  • p0052098_zoning_nwga_0424.txt
  • p0052098_zoning_wga_0424.txt
  • ballarat-west-growth-area-plan-march-2009.txt
  • ballarat-west-growth-area-housing-and-growth-enabling-infrastructure-bnif.txt
  • ballarat.-now-and-into-the-future-enabling-growth-2025-information-pack_0.txt
  • avenue-of-honour-conservation-management-plan-2014.txt
  • koala-plan-of-management-part-1.txt
  • koala-plan-of-management-part-2.txt
  • ballarat-west-growth-area-growling-grass-frog-conservation-management-plan.txt
  • ballarat-west-growth-area-new-schools_feb2026.txt
  • council-record-arch-of-victory-avenue-of-honour-24-june-2025.txt
  • council-record-arch-of-victory-avenue-of-honour-28-october-2025.txt

Growth Areas Framework Plan — Western & North Western Growth Areas

The Growth Areas Framework Plan (August 2024) is the City of Ballarat’s master strategic document governing $1.13 billion in future greenfield infrastructure across two growth areas — the Western Growth Area (1,035 ha, 12,900–17,200 dwellings) and the North Western Growth Area (698 ha, 7,200–9,600 dwellings). Combined, these areas could accommodate 20,100–26,800 dwellings and a population of 54,200–71,900 people — but the VPA’s Infrastructure Growth Alignment Framework (IGAF) (September 2025) has since placed them at the end of Ballarat’s greenfield sequencing queue, behind the Ballarat North PSP and its Expanded Area. The central tension in Ballarat’s growth planning is now between a council framework plan that identifies 30+ years of greenfield supply in the west and northwest, and a state government framework that says none of it should be rezoned before 2034 — and possibly not at all if Plan for Victoria’s 60/40 established-to-greenfield split is achieved. This page analyses that tension in full: the infrastructure costs and funding mechanisms, the constraint overlays that reduce developable area, the heritage conflict along the Avenue of Honour, the cross-jurisdictional dependencies on Central Highlands Water and state road funding, the contested submissions from industry and agencies, and the sequencing arithmetic that determines whether these growth areas will ever proceed.

Background

Origins and Policy Lineage

The Framework Plan is the third generation of strategic growth planning for Ballarat’s western corridor. Its lineage runs through five distinct strategic decisions, each of which shaped the current document:

1. Ballarat Strategy 1998 — Identified Ballarat West as the primary growth front and the next logical extension to the urban fringe. The Strategy was incorporated into the Planning Scheme, including the Overall Framework Plan for the city. This ultimately directed the development of the Alfredton and Ballarat West PSPs that now form the established western growth corridor. The Strategy identified the west as the primary growth front due to “physical and servicing constraints to the north and east and the existing fragmented land use to the south.” (Source: growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt; ballarat-west-growth-area-plan-march-2009.txt)

2. Ballarat West Growth Areas Plan 2009 — Prepared by Tract Consultants with ESD, TTM Consulting, Beveridge Williams and Urban Enterprises, this plan gave effect to the incorporated Ballarat Strategy 1998. It provided limited detail on urban structure but included a staging plan for Ballarat West and Alfredton West that outlined recommended sequencing for future PSPs and advised of alternative sequence criteria. The plan emphasised that more detailed planning would occur through the PSP process. The Growth Area Plan covered approximately 1,290 hectares of land in Ballarat West, with a capacity for “over 14,000 new households which should accommodate a population of 35,000 to 40,000.” It identified two main growth centres at Alfredton and Delacombe. Critically, the 2009 plan acknowledged that “the specific detail of constraints to development has not been accurately assessed for the plan area” — a gap that persisted for 15 years until the technical studies commissioned for the 2024 Framework Plan. The 2009 plan was described as “the second stage of the planning process” sitting between the Municipal Strategic Statement and the Precinct Structure Plans, functioning as an “intermediate plan that sets a long term direction… a guideline to development.” (Source: ballarat-west-growth-area-plan-march-2009.txt; growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt)

The 2009 plan also established key infrastructure principles that carry forward into the 2024 Framework Plan: collector roads located to provide “direct and equally spaced bus routes,” town centres to function as diverse service hubs, a sports reserve distribution co-located with schools, and the use of floodways and watercourses as linear open space. The 2009 plan recognised the arterial network of Remembrance Drive, Carngham Road, Glenelg Highway, and Dyson Drive — the same roads that dominate the 2024 Framework Plan’s transport analysis. (Source: ballarat-west-growth-area-plan-march-2009.txt)

3. Ballarat Long Term Growth Options Investigation (Hansen Partnership, Arup & Tim Nott Economics, 2018) — A high-level desktop assessment of four Greenfield Investigation Areas (GIAs): Northern, Western, North-Western, and Eastern. This study is the foundational strategic rationale for the growth area sequencing that persists to this day. Key conclusions:

  • Northern GIA: Recommended as the preferred next growth front — closest to existing urban services, most efficient to service, strongest alignment with compact city form
  • Western and North-Western GIAs: Potential longer-term growth corridor given proximity to the existing Ballarat West PSP — but identified constraints including heritage (Avenue of Honour), airport operations, and higher servicing costs
  • Eastern GIA: Least preferred due to environmental constraints, servicing limitations, and land fragmentation — explicitly not recommended for development
  • NW GIA ranked last: The 2018 study concluded the NW GIA did not reinforce compact city form, with almost no landholdings within a 10-minute drive of the CBD and relatively high infrastructure costs to service. This ranking has persisted through every subsequent strategic document including the IGAF.

(Source: growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt; ballarat-igaf.txt, Section 4.2.2)

A state agency submission during the 2024 consultation raised concern that “an area of the Western Growth Area had not had the same investigations und

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Analysis

1. Spatial Characteristics and Land Context

Western Growth Area

The Western Growth Area encompasses 1,035 hectares in Cardigan, Lucas, Smythes Creek and Bunkers Hill. It is irregular in shape and consists of relatively open, flat broadhectare rural land currently zoned Farming Zone (FZ). (Source: growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt)

Key spatial characteristics:

  • Interfaces: Entire eastern boundary interfaces with both the Ballarat West PSP area and the suburb of Lucas — the primary advantage for infrastructure extension
  • Northern boundary: Abuts the NW Growth Area and existing Lucas suburb
  • Southern boundary: Bells Road, the municipal boundary between City of Ballarat and Golden Plains Shire. Large lot rural residential development south of this boundary
  • Western boundary: Open broadhectare rural land used for livestock grazing or underutilised; smaller clusters of rural living lots at Bunkers Hill, the Sago Hill Mine and Haddon Common Bushland Reserve
  • Distance from CBD: Outermost point is 10.3 km from the Ballarat Central Activity District — exceeding the Clause 21.02-4 guidance of roughly 8 km
  • Key intercepting roads: Ballarat-Carngham Road, Glenelg Highway, Greenhalghs Road
  • Land uses: Some large rural residential development to the south; a commercial tree plantation south of Ballarat-Carngham Road
  • Gateway entrances: The Western Growth Area forms a significant component of the south-western area of Ballarat. It interfaces with major routes leading into central Ballarat: Ballarat-Carngham Road, Bells Road, Glenelg Highway, and Cuthberts Road. “The routes provide a visual transition between rural and urban areas into Ballarat.”
  • Landscape: The area is “sparsely vegetated, relatively flat, and low lying.” Low to moderate visual sensitivity is present throughout, “with an area of high visual sensitivity in the south west due to the prevalence in views from elevated hillsides.”
  • A Public Acquisition Overlay (PAO) affects a section of land to the west of the growth area and reserves land for the construction and widening of the road for the Ballarat Link Road.

(Source: growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt)

North Western Growth Area

The NW Growth Area encompasses 698 hectares solely within the suburb of Cardigan. It is irregular in shape and consists of relatively open, flat broadhectare rural land. (Source: growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt)

Current zoning is Comprehensive Development Zone 1 (CDZ1) with no active planning control to facilitate development. A small portion of Farming Zone (FZ) and Special Use Zone (SUZ5) exists within the eastern section. This is a critical distinction: the CDZ1 zoning is legacy and does not function as a development-enabling control. Full PSP preparation and rezoning to Urban Growth Zone (UGZ) would be required before any residential development can proceed. (Source: growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt)

Key spatial characteristics:

  • Bisected by Remembrance Drive: The road is a VicRoads-controlled roadway within the Transport Zone (TRZ2) and is affected by Heritage Overlay HO154 (Ballarat Avenue of Honour). This bisection creates two distinct sub-areas — a southern section interfacing with Lucas estate, and a northern section interfacing with rural living areas
  • Northern boundary: Maryborough-Ballarat Railway Line abuts the northern edge
  • Western and south-western boundary: Broadhectare rural land; small rural residential subdivision at the southeast corner of Remembrance Drive and Whites Road
  • Northeast and east: Large lot rural dwellings; Ballarat Airport further northeast; existing Lucas Estate to the east
  • Southern boundary: Interfaces with the Western Growth Area
  • Distance from CBD: Outermost point is 11.4 km from the Ballarat Central Activity District — significantly exceeding the 8 km guidance
  • Commercial tree plantation within the northern section
  • Gateway entrances: The NW Growth Area “interfaces with two major routes leading into central Ballarat: Remembrance Drive – significant tree lined street with a rural setting, transitioning from rural to urban Ballarat; Cuthberts Road – rural setting with a transition from rural to urban Ballarat.”
  • **Landsca

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Current Status

Adopted by the Planning Delegated Committee on 14 August 2024 (Resolution PDC13/24). The officer recommendation was to:

  1. Adopt the revised Growth Areas Framework Plan
  2. Authorise officers to engage with State Government to progress implementation, including early background technical reports
  3. Note that a policy amendment to implement the Framework Plan into the Planning Scheme will be the subject of a separate report

(Source: 14-august-2024-planning-delegated-committee-meeting-agenda-with-attachments.txt, paragraph 65)

The Framework Plan is to be included as a background document in the Ballarat Planning Scheme, with Clause 21 updates. City of Ballarat was “seeking authorisation from the Minister for Planning to exhibit a planning scheme amendment to formalise these plans.” PSP preparation for these areas has not commenced. (Source: ballarat.-now-and-into-the-future-enabling-growth-2025-information-pack_0.txt)

The IGAF (September 2025) has since imposed binding sequencing constraints:

  • No rezoning of Western or NW growth area land in the short term (to 2028)
  • Strategic planning only “if required” per biannual review from 2029
  • Ministerial Direction 18 gives the VPA formal consultation rights on any rezoning amendment
  • The IGAF must be considered the VPA’s advice under Ministerial Direction 18

The Framework Plan must be reviewed every 5 years (next review due August 2029), supported by an assessment of land supply, additional infrastructure needs, and agency consultation. The IGAF requires a biannual land supply report from Council, creating a more frequent review cycle. (Source: growth-areas-framework-plan-western-and-north-western-growth-areas_august-2024.txt; ballarat-igaf.txt)

Timeline of key milestones ahead:

DateMilestoneSignificance
2026 (est.)Ballarat North PSP gazettedAdds 5,700 dwellings to zoned supply
2026–2027Ballarat West DCP review gazettedUpdates levy to $421,701/NDHa
2028CHW current pricing period endsWindow for post-2028 capital works planning
2029 (Aug)Framework Plan 5-year reviewFirst formal reassessment of growth area sequencing
2029–2033IGAF medium-term windowStrategic planning “only if required” per biannual review
2034+IGAF long-term windowStructure planning for growth areas “if required”
2034–2043Precinct 2 DCP timeframeFirst Western Growth Area precinct (if all conditions met)
2037–2048Precinct 1 DCP timeframeSecond Western Growth Area precinct
2041–2055Precinct 3 DCP timeframeThird Western Growth Area precinct
2051Plan for Victoria target date46,900 net new dwellings for Ballarat
2053–2063Precinct 4 DCP timeframeFirst NW Growth Area precinct
2058–2066Precinct 5 DCP timeframeFinal NW Growth Area precinct

The most consequential near-term milestone is the August 2029 Framework Plan review, which will be the first opportunity to formally assess whether the IGAF’s sequencing assumptions remain valid. By that date, 2–3 biannual land supply reports will have been produced, the Ballarat North PSP will be (potentially) gazetted and commencing development, and the Plan for Victoria’s 60/40 growth split will have been tested against 4–5 years of actual dwelling production data.

The Arch of Victory / Avenue of Honour Stakeholder Reference Group continues to meet, with the most recent recorded meeting on 28 October 2025 discussing the “Conservation Management Plan revision” — directly relevant to Actions 3 and 4 of the Framework Plan. (Source: council-record-arch-of-victory-avenue-of-honour-28-october-2025.txt)

28. The Ballarat Population Growth Context

The Framework Plan sits within a broader population growth trajectory that determines whether its assumptions remain valid. Key demographic markers:

  • 2023 estimated residential population: 118,137 (Source: ballarat.-now-and-into-the-future-enabling-growth-2025-information-pack_0.txt)
  • Net increase 2018–2023: 10,529 residents (9.78%) — an annual average of approximately 2,100 people per year
  • 2046 forecast: 164,365 (Source: ballarat.-now-and-into-the-future-enabling-growth-2025-information-pack_0.txt)
  • Plan for Victoria target: 46,900 net new dwellings to 2051, bringing total dwellings to approximately 99,000
  • Housing Strategy projection: 55,000 additional people and 29,000 additional dwellings by 2041

The Framework Plan’s combined capacity of 54,200–71,900 people (across both growth areas, at both density scenarios) represents approximately half to two-thirds of the city’s current population being accommodated in new western suburbs. This scale of growth — even spread across 30–40 years — would fundamentally transform Ballarat from a city centred on its historic core to a predominantly western-oriented urban area.

The “Rapid Growth In South West Suburbs” trend underscores this: “Delacombe, Bonshaw, Smythes Creek, Sebastopol and Redan will grow by 20,000 people from 2021 to 2036, including a significant increase in the number of families with children.” This growth is occurring in the existing Ballarat West PSP area — the same area that the Framework Plan’s Western Growth Area would extend further west. (Source: ballarat.-now-and-into-the-future-enabling-growth-2025-information-pack_0.txt)

Ballarat’s economic base supports this growth trajectory: “Gross Regional Product was 7.7 billion in 2023, up from 6.7 billion in 2019.” The healthcare and social assistance sector is the largest employer (13,576 jobs, 1 billion value added). Construction is the second most productive industry (623.5 million value added, 6,150 FTE). More than four million visitors travel to the region annually with a visitor spend of $1.1 billion. There are 9,952 registered businesses and 62,005 jobs. The city needs to “plan for 17,500 more jobs by 2051.” (Source: ballarat.-now-and-into-the-future-enabling-growth-2025-information-pack_0.txt)

The Framework Plan’s employment projections — 1,258 FTE in the Western Growth Area and 777 FTE in the NW Growth Area, totalling 2,035 FTE — represent only a fraction of the jobs needed. This means these growth areas will be primarily dormitory suburbs, with residents commuting to Ballarat’s CBD, existing employment areas, or the Ballarat West Employment Zone for work. The absence of public transport (Section 8) makes this car dependency essentially permanent for the first decade of development.

Household formation and dwelling size trends: The Plan for Victoria target of 46,900 net new dwellings for Ballarat to 2051 implies an average household size of approximately 2.4 persons (based on the population growth trajectory from 118,137 to approximately 230,000+ by 2051). The Framework Plan’s growth areas assume 2.69 persons per dwelling at the high scenario (71,900 people / 26,800 dwellings) — higher than the Plan for Victoria’s implied average, reflecting th

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Dependencies

  • Blocks: PSP preparation and rezoning for Western and NW Growth Areas; future DCP preparation; activity centre planning in the western corridor; school site reservations; CHW capital works programming for western growth; Employment Lands Strategy implementation in the western corridor
  • Blocked by: IGAF sequencing recommendations (no short-term rezoning); Ballarat Link Road Stages 2–3 (unfunded); Central Highlands Water major upgrade funding (post-2028 pricing cycle at earliest); Remembrance Drive heritage resolution (CMP review required per Action 3, currently in progress); Plan for Victoria settlement boundary (in preparation, could formally exclude these areas); completion of Ballarat North PSP Core Area (Amendment C256ball, estimated mid-2026); Ministerial Direction 18 (VPA consultation rights on any rezoning)
  • Informed by: Taylors Engineering Servicing Strategy (2023, 291 pages); SGS Development Contributions and Infrastructure Funding Assessment (2024, 44 pages); ASR Community Infrastructure Assessment (2023, 105 pages); Alluvium IWM Strategy (2023); Alluvium Surface and Stormwater Management Strategy (2024); One Mile Grid Traffic and Transport Assessment (2024); Macroplan Retail Assessment (2024, 27 pages); Ballarat Long Term Growth Options Investigation (Hansen/Arup/Tim Nott, 2018); Avenue of Honour Conservation Management Plan (John Wadsley, 2014); Ballarat Airport Strategy and Master Plan 2024; Koala Plan of Management (Schlagloth & Thomson, 2006); HillPDA Employment Lands Review (2021); Ballarat West Growth Area Plan (Tract, 2009); Ballarat West GGF Conservation Management Plan (SMEC, 2011); Mapping Ballarat’s Historic Urban Landscape (Context, 2013); Kevin Hazell Strategic Planning for Bushfire (2020)
  • Implements: ballarat-strategy-2040 Initiative 3.6 (growth areas as greenfield opportunities); housing-strategy-2041 greenfield targets; Central Highlands Regional Growth Plan 2014; Clause 21.02-4 (Greenfield Investigation Areas)
  • Conflicts with: IGAF sequencing (IGAF defers these areas behind Ballarat North Expanded Area and all urban renewal precincts); Plan for Victoria 60/40 growth split (if achieved, existing supply meets greenfield target without these areas); compact city objectives (both areas exceed the 8 km arc from CBD)
  • Golden Plains Shire — Cambrian Hill (3,000-lot proposal) abuts Ballarat West PSP southern boundary at Bells Road; relies on Ballarat infrastructure; IGAF places it alongside NW Growth Area at end of greenfield sequence. Golden Plains Shire Council submitted on the Framework Plan requesting inclusion in sequencing.
  • Central Highlands Water — Water and sewer servicing authority; funded projects to 2028 cover only Ballarat West PSP (17.3M sewer, 4.6M Bonshaw SPS, 1.2M water pipeline) and Ballarat North Core Area (13M water, $6.2M sewer); next pricing submission post-2028 is the earliest opportunity for Western/NW growth area funding
  • Department of Transport and Planning / VicRoads — Ballarat Link Road (unfunded, 29.6M in assumed state contributions across 5 segments); Remembrance Drive upgrades (heritage-constrained); Ballarat-Carngham Road duplication; arterial road network management; 11 state-funded transport projects totalling 55.3M (all uncommitted). DTP representative attended Avenue of Honour Stakeholder Reference Group on 28 October 2025.
  • Victorian Planning Authority — IGAF author; Ministerial Direction 18 consultation rights on any rezoning; PSP preparation authority (if appointed); formal veto over premature rezoning
  • Corangamite CMA — Drainage and waterway management across most of both growth areas; three catchments contributing to Burrumbeet Creek, Woady Yaloak River, and Yarrowee River
  • Glenelg Hopkins CMA — Manages a portion of the NW Growth Area’s northern section
  • Powercor — Electricity servicing; capacity and upgrade requirements to be determined at PSP stage (Action 60)
  • Ballarat Airport — Runway 18/36 circuit pattern affects both areas (up to 50–99 events/day >60dB(A)); Runway 05/23 centreline directly overflies NW Growth Area; ANEF and N-contours updated via Airport Strategy and Master Plan 2024; OLS affects most of NW site
  • Wadawurrung Aboriginal Corporation — Registered Aboriginal Party; must be actively engaged on all Aboriginal cultural and heritage matters per Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006
  • Department of Education — 9 government primary schools and 2.7 government secondary schools required across both growth areas; co-location with kindergartens and community facilities per Actions 43–47. Two existing BWGA schools remain unfunded advocacy priorities.
  • Diocese of Ballarat Catholic Education Limited (DOBCEL) — Non-government school provision needs (Action 46)
  • Federation University and Australian Catholic University — Higher education provision needs (Action 47)
  • Infrastructure Victoria — Research underpinning Plan for Victoria compact city policy; $59,000 extra per greenfield home vs compact city finding directly informs IGAF sequencing rationale
  • National Trust of Australia — Representative attended Avenue of Honour Stakeholder Reference Group (28 October 2025)
  • Arch of Victory / Avenue of Honour Incorporated Committee — Community representatives on the Stakeholder Reference Group; active engagement on heritage management. Lucas Past Employees Association also represented.
  • CFA (Country Fire Authority) — Bushfire risk assessment and potential need for a new fire station within the growth areas (Action 55). BMO applies to portions of both growth areas.
  • Ambulance Victoria — Potential need for a new ambulance station within the growth areas (Action 54)
  • Police Victoria — Potential need for a new police station within the growth areas (Action 53)
  • Department of Justice and Community Safety — SES facility assessment (Action 56); Ballarat Magistrates Court capacity assessment (Action 57)
  • Grampians Health Services — Community health facility needs assessment (Action 52)
  • NBN Co — Telecommunications infrastructure extension (Action 61)

Technical Reports Index

The following technical studies were commissioned for or directly inform the Framework Plan. Those marked with * are not available in the corpus:

ReportAuthorYearPagesStatus
Engineering Servicing Strategy*Taylors2023/2024291Referenced, not extracted
Community Infrastructure Assessment*ASR Research2023105Referenced, not extracted
Development Contributions and Infrastructure Funding Assessment*SGS Economics202444Summary in agenda only
Retail Assessment*Macroplan202427Referenced, not extracted
Traffic and Transport Assessment*One Mile Grid2024UnknownReferenced, not extracted
IWM Strategy*Alluvium2023UnknownReferenced, not extracted
Surface and Stormwater Management Strategy*Alluvium2024UnknownReferenced, not extracted
Conservation Management PlanJohn Wadsley2014UnknownPartially extracted
Koala Plan of ManagementSchlagloth & Thomson2006UnknownIn corpus
GGF Conservation Management PlanSMEC2011UnknownIn corpus
Long Term Growth Options Investigation*Hansen/Arup/Tim Nott2018UnknownReferenced only
Airport Strategy and Master Plan*City of Ballarat2024UnknownReferenced only
Employment Lands Strategy*HillPDA2021UnknownReferenced only
Mapping Historic Urban Landscape*Context2013UnknownReferenced only
Strategic Planning for Bushfire*Kevin Hazell2020UnknownReferenced only
Ballarat West Growth Area PlanTract Consultants200990+In corpus
Avenue of Honour Urban Design Guidelines*Hansen Partnership2010UnknownReferenced only
Consultation Summary Report*City of Ballarat202410Referenced, not extracted

The 291-page Taylors Engineering Servicing Strategy is the single most important missing document. It contains the project-by-project infrastructure costings, road cross-sections, sewer pump station specifications, retarding basin dimensions, and trunk infrastructure sizing that underpin the entire $1.13 billion cost estimate.

The full list of reference documents cited in the Framework Plan (from the References section) includes:

  • Alluvium for City of Ballarat (2023) — IWM Strategy
  • Alluvium for City of Ballarat (2023) — Surface and Stormwater Management Strategy
  • ASR Research for City of Ballarat (2023) — Community Infrastructure Assessment
  • City of Ballarat (2024) — Ballarat Airport Strategy and Master Plan
  • City of Ballarat (2022) — Ballarat Net Zero Emissions Plan
  • City of Ballarat (2008) — Ballarat Open Space Strategy
  • City of Ballarat (2024) — Ballarat Planning Scheme
  • City of Ballarat (1998) — Ballarat Strategy Plan
  • City of Ballarat (2020) — Ballarat West Growth Areas Update
  • City of Ballarat (2016) — Ballarat West Precinct Structure Plan
  • City of Ballarat (2019) — Carbon Neutrality and 100% Renewables Action Plan 2019–2025
  • City of Ballarat (2021) — Council Plan 2021–2025
  • City of Ballarat (2022) — Growth Areas Boundary Definition
  • City of Ballarat (2023) — Housing Strategy 2023–2041
  • City of Ballarat (2019) — Urban Forest Action Plan
  • City of Ballarat (2015) — Today Tomorrow Together: The Ballarat Strategy
  • Context Pty Ltd (2013) — Mapping Ballarat’s Historic Urban Landscape Stage 1 Final Report
  • Golden Plains Shire Council (2019) — Northern Settlement Strategy
  • Hansen Partnership, Arup & Tim Nott (2018) — Ballarat Long Term Growth Options Investigation
  • Hansen Partnership for Ballarat City Council (2010) — Ballarat West Growth Area – Avenue of Honour Urban Design Guidelines
  • HillPDA Consulting for the City of Ballarat (2021) — Draft Employment Lands Strategy
  • HillPDA Consulting & Hansen Partnership for the City of Ballarat (2012) — Ballarat Activity Centres Strategy
  • Integra Group (2011) — Alfredton West Precinct Structure Plan
  • Kevin Hazell for the City of Ballarat (2020) — Strategic Planning for Bushfire
  • Kneebush Planning (2010) — Ballarat Aerodrome Noise Modelling Study
  • Kneebush Planning and Airports Plus (2013) — Ballarat Airport Master Plan 2013–2033
  • Macroplan for City of Ballarat (2024) — Growth Areas Framework Plan Retail Assessment
  • One Mile Grid for City of Ballarat (2023) — Traffic & Transport Assessment
  • Schlagloth R & Thomson H (2006) — Comprehensive Koala Plan of Management
  • SGS for City of Ballarat (2023) — Ballarat’s Future Housing N

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Gaps in This Analysis

Documents Referenced But Not Available in Corpus

  1. Taylors Engineering Servicing Strategy (November 2023, 291 pages) — The primary source for all physical infrastructure cost estimates, road cross-sections, sewer pump station specifications, trunk infrastructure sizing, and retarding basin dimensions. The SGS assessment provides aggregate figures but the Taylors report contains project-by-project detail including individual cost line items for each of the 146 DCP projects. CRITICAL gap — without this, infrastructure-by-infrastructure analysis at the granularity required for Einstein-depth is not possible.

  2. SGS Development Contributions and Infrastructure Funding Assessment (2024, 44 pages) — Available in summary form within the committee agenda but Appendices A and B (project-by-project external demand allocations and year-by-year development rate assumptions) are not in the extracted text. These appendices would allow reconstruction of the DCP methodology and sensitivity testing of the levy rates. IMPORTANT gap.

  3. ASR Community Infrastructure Assessment (November 2023, 105 pages) — The standalone report specifying community facility sizes, catchment populations, benchmark costs and service ratios. Only high-level specifications appear in the Framework Plan. The $32M indoor recreation centre costing and detailed community centre specifications are not verifiable against the primary source. IMPORTANT gap.

  4. Alluvium IWM Strategy (2023) and Surface and Stormwater Management Strategy (2024) — Drainage design inputs including retarding basin locations, sizes, and catchment areas. The Framework Plan provides count (20 western, 11 NW) but not individual basin specifications or land-take per basin. Without these, the drainage impact on NDA cannot be quantified at precinct level. IMPORTANT gap.

  5. One Mile Grid Traffic and Transport Assessment (2024) — Transport modelling basis for the Framework Plan. Contains traffic volume forecasts that were contested in submissions, intersection capacity analysis, and the basis for the road upgrade schedule. IMPORTANT gap — state agencies challenged the traffic forecasts and this report is the primary evidence.

  6. Macroplan Retail Assessment (February 2024, 27 pages) — The detailed retail floorspace demand model. Only the aggregate figures (33,853 sqm Western, 18,892 sqm NW) are available; the catchment analysis, expenditure modelling, and competitive assessment are not. USEFUL gap.

  7. State government funding commitments — The $55.3M in assumed state contributions for arterial roads and intersections is indicative only. No formal commitments exist. The Ballarat Link Road Business Case referenced in the Framework Plan has not been publicly released. CRITICAL gap — without confirmed funding, the DCP gap analysis is speculative.

  8. Central Highlands Water pricing submission (post-2028) — Will determine whether and when water and sewer infrastructure for these growth areas is funded. Not yet prepared. This is a future document but represents a CRITICAL gap in understanding the timing of any development.

  9. Plan for Victoria settlement boundary — Being developed in partnership with Council. Will formalise growth limits for Ballarat. The boundary could either accommodate or exclude the Western and NW growth areas, with profound implications for the Framework Plan’s relevance. CRITICAL gap — this boundary effectively determines whether these growth areas ever proceed.

  10. Ballarat Airport Strategy and Master Plan 2024 — The source for updated ANEF and N-contour mapping. The Framework Plan references the noise findings but the spatial mapping of noise contours across the growth areas is not available, preventing quantification of the NDA reduction from airport noise constraints. IMPORTANT gap.

  11. Avenue of Honour Conservation Management Plan (2014) — Development interface requirements — While the document is partially in the corpus, the detailed heritage curtilage mapping and the specific intersection restriction methodology are not fully extracted. The CMP’s policies on road widening and intersection design are central to the NW Growth Area’s feasibility. IMPORTANT gap.

  12. SGS Appendices (project-by-project detail) — The SGS report references Appendices A and B with detailed project sheets for each of the 146 DCP items. These would allow identification of which specific infrastructure items drive the highest costs per precinct. IMPORTANT gap.

  13. Growth Areas Framework Plan Consultation Summary Report (10 pages) — Listed as Attachment 5 to the committee agenda. Contains detailed submission-by-submission analysis. Not extracted. USEFUL gap.

  14. Hansen Partnership, Arup & Tim Nott (2018) Long Term Growth Options Investigation — The foundational desktop assessment of all four GIAs. Only referenced indirectly through the Framework Plan. The original report would contain the methodology for ranking the GIAs and the specific constraints analysis for each. IMPORTANT gap.

  15. Ballarat West Growth Area — Avenue of Honour Urban Design Guidelines (Hansen Partnership, 2010) — Referenced as requiring review and update (Action 3). The original guidelines inform what built form is acceptable adjacent to the Avenue. Not in corpus. IMPORTANT gap.

  1. Kneebush Planning (2010) Ballarat Aerodrome Noise Modelling Study & Assessment of Impact on the Ballarat West Growth Area — The original noise study predating the 2024 Airport Strategy. Would allow comparison of noise contour evolution over 14 years and assessment of whether airport operations have intensified. USEFUL gap.

  2. Kneebush Planning and Airports Plus (2013) Ballarat Airport Master Plan 2013–2033 — The predecessor Airport Master Plan. The 2024 update supersedes this, but the 2013 plan would provide baseline noise contour data for comparison. USEFUL gap.

  3. Context Pty Ltd (2013) Mapping Ballarat’s Historic Urban Landscape Stage 1 Final Report — The source for character area mapping referenced in both growth areas. Would allow assessment of the visual and heritage character constraints at a finer grain than the Framework Plan provides. USEFUL gap.

  4. Golden Plains Shire Council (2019) Northern Settlement Strategy — The adjacent council’s strategic framework for the Cambrian Hill area. Understanding Golden Plains’ growth planning is essential for cross-jurisdictional analysis. IMPORTANT gap.

  5. Kevin Hazell (2020) Strategic Planning for Bushfire in the City of Ballarat — The bushfire risk assessment referenced in the Framework Plan. Would inform understanding of BMO extent and bushfire risk mitigation requirements. USEFUL gap.

CORPUS GAP: Technical Attachments to 14 August 2024 Committee Agenda

  • Type: Multi-document source (7 attachments, ~530+ pages)
  • Source: City of B

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