Two buildings belonging to the Catholic Church are set to go to auction just hours apart on Saturday, raising questions from some over the reasons for the sales.
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St Patrick's Catholic Church in Rokewood and St Peter's Catholic Presbytery in Linton are both being auctioned after being on the market for four weeks as the church shifts its focus from small rural communities to the growth areas of Ballarat.
The buildings belong to two separate parishes under the Diocese of Ballarat and the decision to sell was made by the congregations of the respective parishes.
St Patrick's Cathedral administrator Father Justin Driscoll said the Linton presbytery had not housed a priest for at least seven years.
"The Linton parish has certainly changed and the growth is now on the fringe of Ballarat rather than those communities and the priest is not living in Linton anymore, he's in Redan, closer to where the growth of Ballarat is," he said.
"In Rokewood, it's had a very small and aging congregation and they've made the decision that it was time to close their church building.
"Importantly, the local communities decide. The Linton parish decided it was time to sell their former house and the Rokewood community decided it was time to close and sell their church. [The decision is] always made with sadness but they're realistic and know their needs have changed."
Fr Driscoll said the sales were not motivated by a need to liquidate assets, but by the needs of the community.
"Money has not motivated the sale of these buildings. The Linton house has been empty for eight years and needs significant work to make it livable," he said.
Fr Driscoll said all proceeds from the sales of the two properties would go directly back to the parishes and their communities.
"The parishes are being reconfigured so where the might have once been three parishes, there's now one and communities are working closer together and that's part of our pastoral planning process," he said.
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"The initial thing would be what capital works do they need to do, are there major renovations or upgrades of existing facilities, or are there growth areas within their parishes? These parishes include Sebastopol, Redan and Linton and we know those are some of Ballarat's growth spots."
Professionals Real Estate Ballarat principal Michael Edgar said the properties' value was unknown.
"That situation is why they're going to auction, because it will determine what the interest and demand from the marketplace is," he said.
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