Anthony and Julia

Tell us a little bit about who lives here:

Julia and I met seven years ago at a local cafe called FIKA where she worked. She wrote her phone number on my coffee cup.

Julia works for Ballarat Regional Tourism by day, pouring wines at Mitchell Harris Wines by night. I manage a local vino and pasta restaurant called Raggazone, owned by my good friend Drew Harry, whilst working on the beginnings of my own hospitality venture.

Jack joined our family during COVID last year. Julia spotted him on Facebook during a lockdown, the next day we were at PetRescue. Jack is one of three resident greyhounds at Nightingale Ballarat.

‍How did you first hear about Nightingale Housing and what made you decide to choose Nightingale Ballarat?

‍I'd known about Nightingale Housing for a while but was late to the party in realising it was actually happening in Ballarat. Once I clued on,  I contacted the Nightingale team and was lucky enough to score a little one bedroom apartment. The Government building grant and first home buyers grant helped out a lot too.

‍What aspects of your new home are you loving so far?

The light and sunsets. We have two tangerine trees on our balcony and overlook a footy oval, you wouldn’t know you're in the middle of the City.

You’ve been in your new home a short time, has it been easy to get to know the community?

‍Everyone is super welcoming and friendly. We have recently set up a large communal chalk board for notices - including social drinks in the rooftop garden! Everyone is more than willing to help lend a hand too.

Top three favourite places to go in Ballarat?‍

Ragazzone (of course), Renard and Mitchell Harris Wines. It's so hard to choose - there are so many cool venues and places popping up all the time.