Mair Street high-rise development delayed

By Emma Brown
Updated November 2 2012 - 3:20pm, first published January 4 2011 - 12:55pm
Concept drawings of the planned development at the corner of Mair and Camp streets, Ballarat.
Concept drawings of the planned development at the corner of Mair and Camp streets, Ballarat.

A PLANNED six-storey building in central Ballarat has been delayed by at least six months, but developers hope construction will be under way by mid-year.The high-rise on the corner of Mair and Camp streets will feature more than 5000 square metres of office space, a penthouse apartment, 66 parking spaces, bicycle facilities and a cafe.The high-rise will be located on a site owned by local developer Robert Willian whose son Craig Willian is working to make the plan a reality.Craig Willian said he hoped the project would soon be under way after being approved by Ballarat City Council in July last year.Plans were stalled later in the year when Ballarat man Kenneth Hubbard lodged an objection with VCAT. Mr Hubbard's objections to the proposed building were resolved in mediation with VCAT on December 20."We have gotten the green light to proceed and are now in negotiations with existing tenants to work out a starting date for the project," Mr Willian said.Acting on behalf of the Willians at the mediation was TGM Group town planner James Iles .Mr Iles said Mr Hubbard's chief concern was he didn't feel the design of the building would fit into the streetscape of the area.The outcome of the mediation did not change the height or the number of storeys of the building and resulted in mostly minor changes being made, Mr Iles said."We did reduce the building in size from the Mair Street and Camp Street frontages with them being pushed back by about a metre," Mr Iles said.Cosmetic changes agreed to included replacing all red brick with grey cut stone and removing wooden louvres on the Mair Street frontage. "In effect a permit will now be issued by council subject to the changes agreed to by the parties and ratified by VCAT," he said. The site currently houses Blockbuster Video, Karden Disability Support Foundation, and The Arthur Gallery.KDSF chief executive Karen McCraw said her organisation had not heard from the developers for some time. "We've had limited contact with the developers since the initial application so we're continuing on a daily basis on the assumption we have 14 months to run on our lease," she said.Blockbuster Video was contacted by The Courier but didn't wish to comment on the plans.

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