THE franchisee behind Bathurst's third McDonald's restaurant has confirmed its opening is near, but is dependent on the completion of crucial works.
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McDonald's West Bathurst was meant to open back in August last year, but the project has been significantly delayed because of an unfinished slip lane.
Todd Bryant, the franchisee behind the West Bathurst restaurant as well as McDonald's outlets in Bathurst and Kelso, said he can't open until that work is done.
"We've got everything on stand-by," he said.
"It's all in the hands of the developer.
"I'm just waiting for that phone call from them to say, 'We're going to be finished by this date'."
Mr Bryant was hesitant to provide an exact opening date but he was hopeful that the project would, "fingers crossed", be finished within the next couple of months.
While the road near the hub is managed by Transport for NSW, the developer - Spectrum Retail Group - is the one building the slip lane.
Spectrum Retail Group was contacted for comment.
McDonald's will not be the only outlet on the site: a 7-Eleven service station, Subway and Red Rooster are also waiting to open.
The new McDonald's restaurant in West Bathurst has been fitted out with modern décor and features a McCafé, dual-lane drive-through and a PlayPlace for families.
Mr Bryant is hopeful that the new restaurant will employ 120 to 150 people.
Looking back
Bathurst's first McDonald's restaurant opened on August 1, 1989, when more than 700 people packed into the fast food outlet on Durham Street at lunchtime, with queues reported at the time to be stretching out into the car park.
The Kelso outlet opened its doors on April 15, 2012, with the restaurant celebrating its 10-year anniversary two years ago.
The development application for the West Bathurst project was lodged with Bathurst Regional Council in June 2021, transforming the old Bathurst Automotive Group site at a cost of $4.5 million.
At the time, then-Bathurst councillor Alex Christian said the development was "long overdue".
"For a long time, people on the western side of Bathurst have been calling out, particularly for a petrol station, and this development certainly ticks all the boxes," he told the Western Advocate in June, 2021.
All the businesses that would be housed in the development are proposed to be 24/7 operations.
