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G'day Ballarat! Apparently, we’re the happiest city in Australia, which is lovely news and also mildly suspicious given how many of us have been complaining about the cold already. Okay, okay... it’s mainly me.

This week we’ve got a big mix of local bits: Post Malone somehow coming to town, a new microforest in Black Hill, a radio station turning 40, and a few new places to eat and sip. Not bad for a chilly week in Ballarat.

Grab a cuppa and enjoy the read.

– Luciano Devoto

Here’s a story from early April I completely forgot to share with you all. Seems like the rest of the country is starting to catch on to what we already knew. The 2026 Happy City Index placed Ballarat on top of every other Australian city, ranking us 16th out of 251 cities globally on the world's largest study of urban happiness.

The index pulls together 64 indicators across six dimensions, from green space and air quality to housing affordability, work hours and life expectancy. Ballarat scored well across the board. Average working week of 38 hours, 82.3 years life expectancy, and more than double the global average of green space per person. Adelaide, last year's Aussie winner, slipped to 71st. Melbourne came in at 108th.

The inaugural Ballarat Craft and Design Week wraps up Sunday, with the Bound exhibition still open at the Mining Exchange alongside workshops, talks and open studios. Most events are free. Worth a wander before it packs up for the year.

The Ballarat Heritage Festival runs 21 to 24 May, condensed from nine days into four. This year's theme is Hidden Histories, with a free Mining Exchange exhibition featuring a recreation of the 1901 Chinese Arch alongside the vintage car show, steam train rides and the Beard and Stache competition. Most of it is free.

Country festival Strummingbird is heading to Victoria Park on 10 October with Post Malone leading a lineup that also features Bailey Zimmerman, Cooper Alan, Cam, Sons of the East, and Ballarat's own Lewis Love. Presale opens 13 May, with general tickets the day after. I reckon tickets will sell fast!

A 1.6ha block on Peel Street North will be planted out as a dense native woodland over three years, with Black Hill Primary students helping put in more than 500 trees a year. The draft concept plan is on display at the school this week, weekdays 3pm to 4pm and Saturday 9am to noon. Master plan due in June.

Ballarat's community radio station hit forty on 1 May. Voice FM started life as 3BBB-FM in 1986 and has been broadcasting from Barkly Square ever since, run entirely by locals. The crew has a year of special programs and outside broadcasts lined up to mark the milestone. Forty years of local voices on the dial.

Black Hill could be getting a much larger kindergarten, with Council looking at a new purpose built facility at Binney Reserve. The current kinder is over 50 years old and already full, with space for just 25 children. The proposed new centre could cater for up to 99 places, with community feedback open until 31 May.

Llanberris Reserve is getting a rethink, and locals are being asked what they’d like it to become. Council is hosting a Community Open Day this Saturday at the Golden Point site, with a free sausage sizzle, activities, and a chance to share ideas for the reserve’s future. It runs from 11am to 1pm.

Council is asking locals to suggest official names for unnamed or informally named parks across Ballarat. The idea is to make public spaces easier to find, including for maps and emergency services, while recognising local history and community stories. Suggestions close on 15 May.

Ballarat’s food and drink scene has had a busy little run, with new cafés, distillery moves, rum releases and matcha landing around town. Prey has opened in Lyons Street North, Cobb’s Canteen is now serving in Pleasant Street South, and Grano is getting closer at The Goods Shed. Check out Visit Ballarat for the full list.

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Hints: This Ballarat Central home is not exactly shy. It has stained glass, marble tiling, a grand staircase, twin living rooms, a huge chef’s kitchen and former stables now turned into a private plunge pool retreat. It sits on 505 square metres near both major hospitals. Serious old Ballarat energy.

What do you reckon the asking price is?

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Until next Thursday!

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