The city's legal fraternity, business leaders and welfare workers are all hoping to see funding for an upgrade to Bendigo’s law courts form part of the Victorian government’s budget when it is released tomorrow.
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Business Excellence Bendigo chief executive officer Leah Sertori said a pre-budget survey of the organisation’s members revealed a new purpose-built court facility was their “top priority” for state government funding.
Ms Sertori said the benefits a new courthouse would bring to Bendigo would not be confined to the city’s legal fraternity, but would also mean more Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal matters could be heard locally and provide an opportunity to repurpose the historic building.
“A number of our professional services firms have matters that are heard at VCAT and VCAT panel hearings are [currently] heard in Melbourne so if Bendigo’s court facilities were upgraded, not only is it of benefit to the legal fraternity here in Bendigo in terms of being able to represent a wider ranger of clients and cases but also for all of those organisations and individuals who have a VCAT hearing,” she said.
Ms Sertori said other priorities of Be.Bendigo members were investment in infrastructure, including rail, and the organisation welcomed a pre-budget announcement of a $91 million cash injection for the Bendigo line at the weekend.
“We think that faster rail connectivity between Melbourne and Bendigo will truly encourage a decentralised population,” she said.
Ms Sertori said another area in which Bendigo businesses were keen to see action from the government was in support for local enterprise, including employing Bendigo contractors on government projects.
“Support for small to medium enterprise was really a key theme in our survey where people said it’s the role of the Victorian government to make sure they purchase services from businesses based in Victoria and particularly regional Victoria when it comes to projects that are being delivered here,” she said.
Ms Sertori said Be.Bendigo’s members also wanted the government to help reduce the cost of professional development for business people in Bendigo, to prevent the state becoming “a tale of two cities”.
“Our members were also looking for greater investment in leadership development,” she said.
“Melbourne is growing around 4 per cent, year on year, and that’s not the case for regional cities in terms of their economic growth so investing in the capacity of business owners is key.”
