Q. Why did Council allow the closure of the TAFE Automotive School without a fight?
Neville Castle answered by stating that Council made representations to the local member at the time and the State Government with little result. He also conceded that we should have never lost such an important asset.

Q. Why does it take so long for a D.A? Why are there such high heritage restraints? Why does Council have a heritage consultant from Bathurst.
 Andrew Muir gave statistics that showed that Lithgow had a better approval time than any of the nearby regional councils. The average approval time was 16 days for residential (over 348 D.A.’s – which is a pretty impressive number) and 21 days for commercial. Heritage concerns are high on Council’s priorities as they are keen to keep the streetscape looking its best. The heritage consultant is a qualified heritage architect and has been an advisor for many regional councils over the years.

Q. Can Council give an update on the Land Use Strategy?
Neville Castle says that Council has had many conversations with members of the community regarding sections of the L.U.S. and that Council is planning more meetings with the public and will begin looking at the submissions soon.

Q. Can Council develop a focus group to attract small-medium businesses to the area.
Neville Castle replied that Council had put together a prospectus aimed at highlighting the many benefits of living and working in the local area. Council is currently in the process of getting the prospectus around to many different places.

Q. What is the problem with the land at the former A.D.I. site? Could Council develop something there?
Roger Bailey stated that Council doesn’t own that land.

Q. What is the current situation with heritage precincts? How will these effect current (and possible future) businesses?

Suzanne Lollback suggested that people read the heritage forms that are on display on the Council website and at the administration centre.