Michael Buxton, a professor of Environment and Planning at the School of Global, Urban and Social Studies at RMIT University has called for a greater focus on policy implementation during Sunday’s Ballarat Heritage Watch public meeting.
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This came during discussions regarding protecting Ballarat’s heritage, especially within the city.
Parts of Ballarat are protected by UNESCO World Heritage list, however Mr Buxton believes that the translation of these protections leave a lot to be desired.
“The Victorian goldfield region has tremendous international heritage importance, so it is important that we protect the integrity of the sites surrounding these areas,” he said.
Protecting Ballarat’s inner city heritage sites has become a hot talking point recently due to the rapid development pressure that the city is experiencing.
Mr Buxton is generally pleased with Ballarat’s policies surrounding urban sprawl and rapid growth, however believes that the proposed apartments set for construction as part of the Ballarat Railway Precinct redevelopment fill not be compatible with the rest of the city.
“New developments need to be compatible with Ballarat’s heritage and this apartment building is anything but that.
“Much more planning is needed, these developments need to be an appropriate height and scale and need not result in the pulling down or damaging of Ballarat’s heritage.
“Ballarat’s heritage is its greatest economic asset, people come to Ballarat from around the globe to see our rich history, so it is important to maintain the heritage sites through these periods of massive development.
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