It could be boom time for Ballarat, or a quieter year, as residents find out which election promises are on their way next week.
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On Monday, the Andrews Labor government will announce the 2019/2020 Budget, the first since they were re-elected for four years in November last year.
Wendouree MP Juliana Addison said she was hopeful that Ballarat would see significant investment over the next 12 months.
She said the $7 million election promise for the Wendouree West Recreation Centre was one she had lobbied for since becoming the local member, because of the "community building" it will provide.
The upgrades will include a new pavilion, new soccer pitches and lighting for night games, a dog park, improvements for Wendouree Neighbourhood Centre and relocation of the Men's Shed.
Ms Addison said Forest Rangers Soccer Club stalwart Marilyn Tyndall had "been trying to get someone to listen for 25 years".
"One of the problems with the recreation reserve is that in summer they can't train there because it's rock hard, in winter they can't train there because it's so muddy.
"And what the Forest Rangers do is they provide food for kids, and anyone who needs support to play and uniforms, they are welcomed," she said. "But at the moment, they're paying significant money to train at Morshead Park."
Other promises made to recreation reserves last year include $3 million for Ballan's new sporting pavilion, $220,000 for Haddon Recreation Reserve grounds and $5 million for a Sebastopol pocket park or town square.
A $5.2 million pledge for stage two works at Ballarat Sports and Events Centre, which would include a purpose-built strength and conditioning gym and three-on-three outdoor basketball courts, popularly known as street ball.
Ms Addison noted that number of the election promises made - such as $58.6 million for nine road intersection and trouble spot upgrades, $2.5 million for lighting up Lake Wendouree and new schools in Lucas and Miners Rest - worked together.
"We know with lights around the lake and Victoria Park, for runner and walkers ... to be able to cross safely at Sturt Street with lights, that'll be a great 10 kilometre circuit," she said.
"All these election promises are actually linking in together. We know Alfredton is growing, so we need to upgrade the Alfredton Reserve (for $3.7 million), but you can't do that unless you put necessary infrastructure in. It's the jigsaw puzzle with Ballarat's development to the west."
She said she expected funding for major promises would be dripped out, with projects such as recreation reserve upgrades and $10 million for Her Majesty's Theatre able to be staged re-developments.
Another major area for Ballarat's standing as a regional city is our transport connections.
While it was revealed earlier this week that $100 million would be provided in the budget for electrification and quadruplification of the train line from Melton to the metro CBD - meaning Ballarat would have a quicker service to Melbourne - more than $5 billion will need to allocated to the airport rail link.
The money for the airport link to Sunshine would allow Ballarat residents to avoid travelling into the city to get public transport out to Tullamarine.
New VLocity carriages and trains worth more than $340 million were also promised last year for the busiest regional routes, which would include Ballarat.
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