ONLY days out from Ballarat’s Heritage Festival – an event which showcases the city’s historic buildings and streetscapes – and industrial bans by council staff threaten to leave our streets and parks looking like a tip.Specific bans by the Australian Services Union on emptying bins along the east side of Lydiard Street North, between Sturt and Mair Streets, left the footpaths yesterday looking like the morning after a big rock concert.Until late yesterday morning, empty food and drink containers and papers spewed from the street’s overflowing rubbish bins and were blown across the road, forcing city council executive managers and directors to don gloves and clean up the mess.The same city leadership team will be working through until Sunday night ensuring the streets are tidy for this weekend’s Heritage Festival, which is expected to attract thousands of visitors to Ballarat. Council executives will also hold talks with festival organisers to determine the location of the majority of events, as well as discuss with council staff where the bans actually apply within the city.City of Ballarat workers are being offered a 3.6 per cent rise, equal to $32 a week, but are demanding 4 per cent, or $50 per week. Council staff have until May 11 to lodge their vote with the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) on the proposed wage increase.City council chief executive officer Anthony Schinck said the health and safety aspects of the bans had been discussed with the ASU yesterday.Mr Schinck, who was disappointed with the state of Lydiard Street after a tour of the precinct early yesterday morning, was hopeful of a dispute outcome only days after the May 11 vote deadline.“I am hoping to meet with the union a day or two after the votes have been lodged to look at resolving any outstanding issues,” Mr Schinck said. “However, I guarantee the streets of Ballarat will not look like this come the weekend, because these streets are the focal points of the festival.”He said he was reluctant to bring in contractors to clean the streets before the festival, but stressed he may be forced into action to ensure the interests of all Ballarat were retained. “I don’t want to get into a conflict over this issue and I don’t agree with bringing in contractors, but I may have no other option. The Heritage Festival has benefits for many in the city who are not part of the industrial dispute. But this dispute is with me and (council) management, not with the community.”The state of Lydiard Street North has disappointed traders along that strip. Owner of Spee-Dee Dry Cleaners, Neil Brown, said the rubbish left in the street was disgraceful, but said people who initially dumped the litter should take some responsibility.While Steve Hutchinson, who owns the Java Lounge, is hopeful the street will remain clean over the Heritage Festival/Mother’s Day weekend. “This litter blowing down the street is not a good look for the city,” he said.