Operations manager Frank Dante said the three-month renovation will begin next week.

“The whole store will be gutted and totally renovated,” he said.

“It’ll eventually include a butcher, a bakery and people will be able to buy hot chickens and other hot meals.”

An expanded seafood range will also be for sale at the front of the store.

Mr Dante said the renovation would take place in sections, allowing the store to remain open while the work was being completed.

“We’re following the blueprint of our Bowral store and I think people are going to be excited,” he said.

“The attention to detail will be mind-blowing.”

Mr Dante said the store would eventually stock a large range of eco-friendly grocery items with an increased emphasis on locally-produced products.

“We’re in discussions with the Huntley Berry Farm to stock their jams and spreads in store,” he said.

Entry to the store will be via the car park entrance, however, customers will exit the store into the Orange Arcade.

Mr Dante said he wasn’t able to confirm if the footprint of the store would be expanded to make way for the changes.

ORANGE GJ Gardner Homes owners Mark and Debbie Stoffels recently celebrated laying their 300th house slab since starting with GJ Gardner Homes in Tweed Heads in 2003.

They are the first GJ franchisee in NSW to have reached this milestone.

The team has built 34 homes in Orange district in the last year, equating to 33 per cent growth for the business. 

Mr Stoffels said the team at G.J. Gardner Homes Orange owed its success to the community, who had supported them since opening in 2008.

“We have built 140 homes since we started our business here and there are no signs of things slowing down,” he said.

“We love Orange and its people and are so proud that we have been able to be a part of making so many new-home dreams comes true here.”

Mr Stoffels predicted they would experience a further 25 per cent growth over the next year.

ORANGE Credit Union retail services manager Glenn Tracey says a proposed tax on money in banks, building societies and credit unions spells bad news for both lenders and borrowers.

Mr Tracey said the federal government was considering introducing a deposit levy, which would be charged to financial institutions, which may in turn pass the costs on to their customers.

“The extra cost on deposits could mean lower returns (to customers),” he said.

Mr Tracey said even though an independent enquiry recommended against the levy he was disappointed the government was considering proceeding anyway.

“Perhaps its just a revenue grab,” he said.

Opposition treasury spokesman Chris Bowen proposed the tax in August 2013, when he was treasurer,saying it was designed to ensure financial lenders held extra capital as insurance against their collapse.