THE Little Bridge Street precinct will undergo an overhaul aimed at increasing community safety at the notorious bus interchange.
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The $280,000 revamp will see the construction of new toilets, better lighting, public art, landscaping works and installation of two new CCTV cameras.
Wendouree MP Sharon Knight made the announcement on Monday, with the Victorian Government contributing $230,000 to the project.
She said it was a great announcement which would change one of the key entrances to the city’s central business district.
“Most importantly this is the area where members of the community, bus commuters, retailers and general members of the public have felt quite unsafe,” she said.
“The police have acknowledged it is an area of high crime, (...) and I know the City of Ballarat receives a lot of complaints.”
Ms Knight said the money for the project would come through to the City of Ballarat who had already started the planning works.
“The planning has been done, we know the need is there and now here is the money, so we can get cracking straight away,” she said.
The area has long been considered a problem for police with community members repeatedly saying they feel unsafe.
Ballarat Police Inspector Bruce Thomas said one of the most common responses from the public was in regard to the number of undesirable people hanging around in the area which created a perception the area wasn’t safe.
“With the new amenity in the area, as cheery as a public toilet can be, it will improve that perception,” he said.
“Even though there are not the crime statistics to back it up, if people don’t feel they are safe, they won’t come here.
“So that perception is a very big thing.”
Inspector Thomas said there had also been a few incidents in the area and while CCTV cameras already existed, the two extra cameras would be of benefit to the local police.
“When you have a large group of people congregating in one area you are always going to have some public safety incidents,” he said.
City of Ballarat Mayor John Philips said the council had added $50,000 to the project.
“It is important to feel safe as well as having the quality facilities,” he said.
“So the perception of safety in the community is very important.”
The government funding comes from the Public Safety Infrastructure fund which supports projects that limit the impacts of crime on the community through preventative rather than punitive measures.
