A 10,000-capacity live entertainment venue stands to be the latest addition to the growing Ballarat West Employment Zone after Broo Brewery released preliminary designs for its new premises.
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The company said in a statement on Friday “the brief for the Broo brewery called for a multi-functional outdoor space for concerts, expos, market stalls and outdoor events”.
The commercial brewer announced in February it would be constructing a $100 million, environmentally friendly brewery across 15 hectares in Ballarat West, making the company the biggest player in the growth zone.
Broo chief executive Ken Grogan said: “the entertainment and activity facilities at the brewery in Ballarat will include brewery tours, a beer museum, an energy education centre, a restaurant and bars and an outdoor amphitheatre with surrounds to accommodate concerts and festivals”.
The company will look to put the plans before council in the next 12 months with the aim of beginning construction in 2018.
The entirely carbon neutral facility could be completed as early as the following year and is expected to create 100 ongoing jobs.
While council was yet to view the plans, City of Ballarat development and planning director Angelique Lush said it excited for the jobs and investment at the site and would “work with the Broo Brewery to ensure a very warm welcome (for) one of the first five tenants of the Ballarat West Employment Zone”.
If given the green light, the proposal could ease the heavy workload on the North Gardens, which have become the home for live entertainment in recent summers.
Council was forced to juggle multiple major concerts such as Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, the John Farnham-led Red Hot Summer Tour and The Cat Empire as well as the regular Summer Sundays series across 2016-17.
In 2010, then-City of Ballarat chief executive Anthony Schinck questioned whether the gardens were a suitable location for live music after a Powerfinger concert caused $30,000 in damage to the surface following heavy rainfall.
City of Ballarat mayor Samantha Mclntosh said she encouraged the exploration of tourism opportunities in BWEZ but that council needed to be mindful of other potential events precincts being built.
Council is in the process of compulsorily acquiring the North Ballarat Sports Club precinct and has touted the revamped Mars Stadium as a potential destination for major events such as live music.
“We need to be very mindful of the existing plans for the city but at the same time with the population growth we need to be mindful of what that will require in terms of venues,” Cr Mclntosh said.
“There are significant tourism opportunities in BWEZ and I’m absolutely comfortable that Broo are providing something greater than just a brewery.”
The artistic designs for the premises also include a 45-metre viewing platform, which will allow tourists to gain a view across the brewery, with a 500m zipline back to ground level. The block will also have up to six hectares of water bodies as well as 4.8 hectares of solar panels.
Wind turbines and bio gas will also be used to minimise the carbon footprint of the brewery, which is expected to save up to 300 million litres of water a year compared to regular brewing methods.
Broo is hoping to form joint venture partnerships with other private businesses to deliver elements of the complex and is also hoping to secure future government grants.
The business is also gearing up to open a restaurant called Brew Burger at the Delacombe Town Centre. That venture is expected to begin trading next year.
The company will brew 480 million litres of beer per year out of the BWEZ site, with the majority to shipped into the Chinese market.
