It seems Ballarat's Sovereign Hill has struck election gold, with Ballarat MP Catherine King announcing a $10 million funding injection, ahead of the site's 50th anniversary.
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Appearing at Sovereign Hill on Saturday afternoon, along with floods of tourists for the Easter long weekend, Labor's Ms King said the open air museum provided a "solid base of tourist investment" for the region.
"Even when you go internationally, people will talk about Ballarat and Sovereign Hill, gold and our history," she said.
It follows the $10.1 million announcement by Federal Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Simon Birmingham for the tourism draw card, revealed at the MADE of Ballarat Pop-Up Store in Melbourne on Saturday morning.
"... This funding boost will help ensure its rich history continues to be shared with future generations," Minister Birmingham said.
The funding will help redevelop the Gold Museum, upgrade the entrance building and improve disability access, refresh signage, enhance the popular gold panning area and educational facilities, and create a centre of excellence for rare trades.
If Labor wins the federal election on May 18, Ms King said the money would be available for the tourist operator in its first budget.
"It means that smaller tourist operators can leverage off the back of the back of the investment made here," she said.
"Obviously disability access is a problem here, and Sovereign Hill has been renowned for actually improving the quality of the product they have here so it is more accessible to people."
The region has called for a total of $43 million to be sunk into Sovereign Hill, as part of its 'Beyond Fifty' campaign to continue innovating for years to come.
As Ballarat's biggest tourism attraction, Sovereign Hill hosts more than 800,000 visitors across its gold fields and Gold Museum each year.