Eleven of the City of Ballarat services will be temporarily suspended as the state enters a circuit breaker lockdown for the next seven days.

As of 11.59pm last night, Victorian residents only have five reasons to leave their house: to shop for food and supplies, authorised work, care and caregiving, to get vaccinated and to exercise for two hours maximum.

City of Ballarat CEO Evan King said these restrictions mean the council will have to close some of their facilities to protect their city and residents.

“We know many people will be disappointed with some facilities temporarily shutting their doors, but I want to assure everyone our core essential services will continue to run,” he said.

The suspended services include:

• Town Hall, including the Ballarat Information Centre
• Civic Hall
• Libraries*
• Parent Place
• Eureka Centre
• The Phoenix
• Ballarat Mining Exchange
• Outdoor pools
• Ballarat Aquatic and Lifestyle Centre
• Art Gallery of Ballarat
• Her Majesty’s Ballarat

Residents will be able to do a click and collect service at all Ballarat libraries from 10am to 5pm on weekdays and 9.30am and 12pm on Saturday.

The snap lockdown also affects the Ballarat Heritage Festival and the City of Ballarat’s National Reconciliation Week events. All scheduled events for both programs will either be cancelled or rescheduled to a later date.

The following essential services will remain operating during the lockdown, but with some changes made adjusting to the imposed restrictions.

• Operations Depot
• Ballarat Transfer Station
• Meals on Wheels
• Childcare*, kindergarten, Maternal and Child Health services and childhood immunisation services (by appointment)
• Ageing Well (limited service)
• School crossings
• Animal shelter (by appointment only)
• Ballarat Botanical Gardens, playgrounds, off-leash dog parks, skateparks
• City of Ballarat’s customer service

Childcare services will be prioritised for essential service workers who need the support.

City of Ballarat Mayor Cr Daniel Moloney said now is the time for everyone to do their part and to work together to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

“Let’s get behind Ballarat business who will need our support more than ever, grab a takeaway meal this week if you can and be kind to all the retail workers around the city,” he said.

Photo: Ballarat Town Hall by Keltek Trust available HERE and used under a Creative Commons Attribution. The image has not been modified.