BATHURST Regional Council may soon determine a direction for the future of the old TAFE building, with it expected to call for expressions of interest in the coming months.
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In February, councillor Monica Morse called for a report to be prepared "with plans and timeline for the development of the former TAFE building in William Street".
Her hope was that the notice of motion would help to speed up decision making on the central business district landmark, which council officially took ownership of in 2016.
The report she requested has now been prepared and is on the agenda for Wednesday's council meeting.
It recommends that council undertaken an expressions of interest process to identify commercial opportunities for the adaptive reuse and/or redevelopment of the former TAFE site, potential private sector investment interest in the site and possible options for joint ventures with council and other community groups.
The report lists nine matters that expressions of interest should give consideration to.
This includes the need to maintain and enhance the operations of the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum (AFMM), the creation of a new public community plaza or square to the rear of the building, and identifying a source of funds.
The report notes that many of the issues identified "involve significant upfront costs" and that external funds will be necessary in any redevelopment.
It also notes that council has incurred a range of costs to manage and maintain the site, and those costs haven't been able to be offset by the income it receives through car parking leases on the land behind the AFMM.
"Council has yet to test private investment interest in the site and it is proposed that this be the next first step prior to council otherwise committing funds to ongoing investigations that may be able to be undertaken by a private developer, development consortium or joint venture with council," the report says.
"It is the opinion of council staff that external sources of funds will be necessary, to support the works necessary to contemplate any future use.
"An expression of interest process is recommended as the best means to identify such opportunities. Such a process will not commit council to any particular reuse/redevelopment option but could reveal an entity that council could be prepared to negotiate with."
In addition to calling for expressions of interest, it is also recommended that council establish appropriate legal rights of access over Lot 5 of the site in favour of the Telstra Exchange and the post office building.
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