Lismore council's CBD office closes tomorrow

LISMORE City Council will close its office in Magellan Street tomorrow and John Jessup is not happy.

LISMORE City Council will close its office in Magellan Street tomorrow and John Jessup is not happy.

Mr Jessup is vision impaired and therefore not able to drive a car and has to rely on others to get him around.

"I think a lot of people will be upset when it closes. Not everybody can get up to Goonellabah," he said.

He cited council's recent decision to close the Goonellabah Library (a decision that was later overturned) and to sell small parcels of public parkland as showing that council is out of touch with community needs.

"What else are they going to sell off? The Federal and State governments are both selling off the farm and now it seems the council is too."

Mr Jessup said it was useful to be able to access council services in town and to be able to read council reports and proposals.

But council corporate services manager Simon Adcock said council would save $120,000 a year by closing down the CBD office, with all of that money plus $30,000 more being allocated to a CBD improvement fund.

How to spend that money would be determined by a CBD citizen's group which is yet to be convened. The CBD improvement fund will increase to $200,000 from 2014/15.

"Council sees the value of having a presence in the CBD but the office was not well utilised and at a time when we're making tough financial decisions, the case to keep it open was not strong enough. People are embracing modern technology such as paying rates online and are moving away from doing business over the counter.

"The closure of the CBD office is unfortunate, but a prudent financial move in the current climate," Mr Adcock said.

City centre manager Renee Moehead would be relocated to the Gordon Pavilion at Oakes Oval and four rangers would move to Goonellabah Community Centre.

Rates and bills could still be paid at the Post Office and Commonwealth Bank.

Lismore Council had been set a goal by the general manager to relocate to the CBD "at an acceptable cost to the community" and was looking for a partner to develop a commercial office building in the CBD.

However, this would only be realised if a suitable partner could be found.