ONE of the regular criticisms we hear of Bathurst Regional Council is that it is too focused on supporting local sports to the detriment of local culture.
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It's a criticism that has never been justified, but even less so today.
The opening of the Bathurst Rail Museum to the public on Saturday morning brings to four the number of major local museums under the control of council.
It's a cultural portfolio that must be the envy of other regional centres and puts a lie to the claim that council is interested only in sport. Just one of the museums, the National Motor Racing Museum, has a sporting focus but surely no one could criticise the city's investment in that facility.
The National Motor Racing Museum sits at the foot of iconic Mount Panorama and there is nowhere in Australia better suited for it.
As home to a near-complete T-rex skeleton, the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum is unique in this state, while the Chifley Home and new rail museum both provide insights into the way Australia was not that long ago.
The four museums can only add to Bathurst's reputation as a city of educational excellence and they will bring in thousands of visitors - young and old - every year.
Council must be congratulated both on its foresight to first imagine these museums and then the determination to see the projects through to fruition.
Of course, the goldmine that is Mount Panorama helps council funds these facilities.
And that's why council's investment in Mount Panorama - and other world-class sporting facilities - is good for all sectors of the community.
Rather than complain about the money spent on sport in Bathurst, critics should focus on just how much money is being returned to the city as a result.