Councillors have backed Justine Linley’s appointment as the City of Ballarat CEO.
In a unanimous vote on Wednesday night the motion to appoint Ms Linley in the role was passed as expected.
She has a strong background in the region, after five years as CEO of Northern Grampians Shire Council and serving previously as Grampians director of Regional Development Victoria, a position based in Ballarat.
Mayor Des Hudson outlined the recruitment process and said they had had 31 formal applications for the job.
Of these applicants, 24 were male and seven were female.
The motion to appoint Ms Linley, read by Cr Hudson, was to hire her on a five-year contract starting on May 23.
All nine councillors were involved in the recruitment process, and several rose to speak positively about Ms Linley based on extensive past dealings with her.
Cr Hudson thanked the two internal applicants for the role and acting CEO Frank Dixon for his work.
