The Civic Hall has long been a neglected icon. Built in the 1950s it's an excellent example of Modernism with Art Deco influences. The City of Ballarat Council closed it for public use in 2002, despite it (still) being in excellent condition. In 2012 the Council proposed to demolish it for council offices. There was a huge outcry, so Council funded several community consultations and even a Morgan
Poll, all of which showed that the majority of residents want to retain the Hall. Last year the Council applied to demolish it, this time with no plans at all for what is to replace it. The community responded with over 3,000 submissions objecting to the demolition. On Dec 9, 2015 Council rescinded this application. It now has committed to a "community participatory design process" which is intended to deliver 3 final, fully costed plans for the whole site - perhaps mid next year. Council will then vote on their preferred option. Currently 5 design concepts are being displayed. The process whereby the community contributes to this is somewhat vague, and currently "Stage 1" work has been approved. This includes repair and reopening of the main hall, and developing parklands to the west and front of the building. However, it also proposes to block off the exisiting main hall stage, and to demolish the existing commercial kitchen, rebuilding it in the foyer area. This will remove the staircases & make permanent changes to the foyer, well before final plans are made for the site. SCH considers this premature and a waste of funds. The Civic Hall was built with funds raised by the community. Since it opened in 1956 it has been used for grand events such as balls and dances, Mayoral receptions, trade shows, speech nights and more. So the community feels it belongs to them and they want to be able to use it. The Civic Hall is the largest, flat-floored events centres in Ballarat. The largest hall in the region is now Beaufort!!! There is no other venue now for indoor staging of rock concerts, trade shows, festivals and large exhibitions, dances and balls. The Civic Hall has a long history in Ballarat and deserves a second chance as a hub for community activity. It would be cheaper and less environmentally damaging to renovate it and there is still room on the site to house offices, a restaurant, youth spaces etc as well as run events just as it was originally designed to do. Visit our website to find out more and get involved: http://savecivichall.org
Here is an example of a building strikingly similar to our Ballarat Civic Hall which has been revitalised to serve the community.
