Plans to give sporting facilities at Victoria Park a million dollar upgrade are a step closer following the lodging of a planning permit application.
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The new facilities will include a new community pavilion, alongside two new soccer pitches with a cricket oval overlay, new cricket nets, as well as six flood-lights to allow for evening training sessions and night games.
The single-storey pavilion, which is due to be accessed via a new entrance on Military Drive, will include four changing rooms, a large social room, a kitchen and a kiosk where food can be sold to spectators.
A sheltered verandah and large eastward-facing windows are designed to give a good view of the sports unfolding in front.
Sporting clubs including Victoria Park Soccer Club and Lucas Cricket Club, which already use existing facilities at the park, will be able to use the new pavilion and changing rooms once they are complete.
The planning application says the new building could potentially be used to host female cricket games.
As well as these clubs using the grounds on weekends, planning documents say the buildings could be used by other community groups such as parkrun and Ballarat Sebastopol Cycling Club - or for events such as Spilt Milk.
The main building would be 562 square metres. Combined with the verandah, the new development would have a total area of 717 square metres.
New nets would be put in place to the north of the new ovals. There are existing changing rooms in place on the south-eastern side.
The design documents included with the application show the pavilion is planned on the western side of the new soccer pitches.
The closest houses are more than 150 metres away on the western side of Gillies Street.
The project, with a projected cost of $1 million, is being funded entirely by the City of Ballarat as part of its recreation services capital program.
The plans are currently being advertised on the council's planning website (https://eservices.ballarat.vic.gov.au/). For full details see planning application number PLP/2021/85.
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