After years in the planning stage, the actual construction seems to be going at breakneck speed - much to the delight of nearby residents and the existing businesses in the shopping centre.

It’s hard to believe the key tenant in the new development, a new Domino’s pizza outlet, is on track to open in just six weeks with the expanded car park expected to be completed around the same time.

From there the focus will move to redeveloping the existing shops and supermarket, along with the construction of a new childcare centre.

Once completed, the redevelopment will create a new vibrancy to the immediate vicinity of the shopping centre, but this is a building program focused as much on the future as the present.

The return on this investment will not be measured by the shopping centre’s success over the next few months but, rather, over the next two decades.

The arrival of a major franchise such as Domini’s store at the Westpoint centre says a lot about the expected continued growth of the suburb, and it’s not hard to see why.

Westpoint Shopping Centre opened at a time when the housing boom around Llanarth was only just beginning but now it is growing to match the growth around it.

The success of Westpoint – and the satellite shopping centre at Trinity Heights – tells a story about the expansion of Bathurst. And with the city’s population forecast to top 53,000 by 2036, there is plenty more growth to come.

You don’t have to look far to see the proof.

Bathurst Regional Council, in particular, has been an active player in the real estate market in both Windradyne and Eglinton, releasing hundreds of new lots through its ballot system in recent years.

There have also been private developments beside the Macquarie River and plans are well advanced to create more than 200 new lots behind Eglinton Public School.

More houses means more people and that all means more opportunities for businesses to tap into a market that does not want to make the trip all the way into town.

Services close to homes are one of the keys to a liveable city and that’s what these centres provide. We can only wish Westpoint every success.