Tour to Imagine
As part of the Imagine Ballarat East consultation with the community, a request went out for community members to take a tour of ‘their’ Ballarat East. I took up the offer, and here are some places I visited.
You can take the folks on a tour too by contacting the Deakin researchers kristal.buckley@deakin.edu.au
Kicked off the tour at the Synagogue. Glasses on glasses. You can wear them with shades as well. AND you don’t look too crazy! Do I?
Heading down Barkly towards the Ballarat East Civic Centre. The old hall still stands.
The Ballarat East Free Library, now part of the school, stands proudly despite the ‘Free Library’ sign all but disappeared above the door.
The Ballarat East Town Hall Gardens, in desperate need of some love and attention. And the last remaining vestige of the Ballarat East Town Hall. This is public land, however who maintains it is in doubt. With the school declaring the site ‘surplus to need’ its future is in doubt. Read more here: http://ballarateast.online/topics/community/be-town-hall-gardens/
We traversed Main Road to view the Chinese monument and the site of the Joss House, before heading up Eureka St, here is the old Eureka St Primary School now private residence. (We have now added this to the Ballarat Time Capsule.)
Rebel Easties, Eureka Street.
The Tammy Fence Eureka Street. Story here: http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/3744226/whats-art-got-to-do-with-it-erin-mccuskey/?cs=62 Film here: https://vimeo.com/66981539
Just around the corner, palms and eucalypts.
Creeks traverse Ballarat East, some bluestoned, other free flowing. The walking tracks that run along them are beautiful.
And the bridges and thoroughfares are endlessly interesting.
Windy streets, native grasses, hilly vistas and miners cottages all completes the chaotic picture of Ballarat East.
Back streets, back fences, no footpaths and trees all are markers you are East!
Blue skies that are often grey, church halls abandoned and graffiti.
Community recognition in Victoria St ‘Loud Fence’ to acknowledge and support the survivors of sexual abuse by the clergy.
Its difficult to show on a single tour how beautiful and diverse the East is. How beautiful the sunrise, how beautiful the sunset, how dark the nights and how bright the stars. We love our East for all its diversity of built form, diversity of form and function, the intangible stories and icons and heritage. How much we have lost, and how much we still have to protect. Here’s to Ballarat East. Hip Hip…
Please take a tour and show researchers more of our East. Its easy, they give you a pair of glasses with a camera to record where you go, what you say and what you look at. Takes about 45 mins, and will be a great archive of how we know our Ballarat East today.
Tags:#imagineballarateast