A state government-run conference will be held next month to help address the region's housing crisis.
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Minister for Housing Danny Pearson and Minister for Regional Development Harriet Shing announced the regional affordable housing summit on Tuesday.
To be held in Creswick, near Ballarat, on October 4, the summit will bring together leaders across the government, community and business sectors to discuss ways to deliver affordable housing.
Member for Western Victoria Stuart Grimley brought the idea to the state government late last year and has repeatedly called for parliament to consider and act on calls from regional communities to address the urgency around housing issues.
On Tuesday Mr Grimley said he was over the moon with the announcement.
"I have been working closely with western Victorian communities to get the ball rolling to fix our housing crisis," he said.
"This housing summit is a step in the right direction for all regional Victorians. I'd like to thank the government for taking my advice on board and acting on it."
Mr Grimley said councils, businesses, and other organisations wanted to have their voices heard and the summit would give them this opportunity.
"Regional Victoria is very different to metropolitan Victoria which is why I've been calling for a regional summit," he said.
"I live in regional Victoria, I represent people in regional Victoria, and we want to have our say on our future and our way of life, because we live and work here."
Mr Grimley said regional Victoria was struggling to house people.
"Without housing, new employees cannot move to towns to fill jobs, businesses can't operate at full capacity, councils miss out on revenue to fix local infrastructure and the list goes on," he said.
"This summit will be the first step in fixing this crisis."
Agencies across the south-west have reported increased numbers of people seeking help finding affordable accommodation in recent years.
Brophy Family and Youth Services is seeking a block of land suitable for crisis accommodation.
The service has limited supported accommodation options available for clients, but the city doesn't have any crisis accommodation.
The Standard has been contacted by a number of people who have expressed concerns about people sleeping rough in public areas across the city.
Homelessness advocate Les Twentyman, who has been visiting Warrnambool on a regular basis for two decades, last month said there wasn't enough housing stock and "no one is seriously looking into it".
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