Name of ticket or independent: Ticket member – Group G Fitzsimon-Miller.

Are you a mayoral candidate? No.

Are you currently an Orange councillor? No.

Age: 33.

Family: Fiance Fiona and daughter Jocelyn.

What do you do for a living? General manager Central West Mowers and Heating.

How long have you lived in Orange? I have lived my whole life within a 20-minute drive of Orange.

What is the best part of living in Orange? The people are the best part about living in Orange. It’s a great place to raise a family, where you can still wave to strangers and get to know your neighbours.

Why are you running for Orange City Council? I am running for Orange City Council to see greater value for money for ratepayers and to see our rates spent well and spent locally where ever possible. It is obvious the way past money has been spent on inferior roads, re-doing inferior roads and then redoing them again is not good value for money, along with many high-risk purchases of land and property that Orange City Council should have never been involved in.

How would you assess the performance of the current council? The short and simple assessment of Orange City Council is there needed to be “less bitching and more bitumen”. We will always need people with different opinions on council but the infighting and wasting of money on frivolous code of conducts was a big hindrance during the previous term.

Council has budgeted $17 million for roadworks in the next road-building season. Is this enough? Which roads should get priority? I can not accurately say whether the $17m budget is enough to cover the state our roads are currently in without seeing real figures and breakdowns on costs, proper consultation and current quotes. What I do know is the level of quality we currently build our roads to has to be raised. Unfortunately with budget constraints this may mean not every road that needs work within that budget cycle may be done but what it should mean is that the roads that are undertaken are done properly and built to standard that will last. That is how I want my rates spent.

What is your plan for the Northern Distributor Road? There is no doubt the best way forward for the Northern Distributor Road is to try to work with state government to take the road over. I realise this has been tried but it simply has to be tried again. With state government assuming responsibility it would be a massive ease on the current budget strain. I know getting state on board may be like trying to get blood from a stone but we have nothing to lose and everything to gain by continuing to try.

Do you agree with the industrial re-zoning at Orange airport? What should the space be used for in the future? I am definitely against this in its current form. There was nowhere near enough research or consultation done on this before it was being rushed through. There is simply no justifiable reason for building an industrial park in the middle of our water catchment area and right over a very easily contaminated aqua duct. Our biggest growing sector in Orange at the moment is tourism. Do we really want the first thing people travelling to Orange to see to be an industrial park? Or do we want it to be the pristine green agricultural land that Mount Canobolas has blessed us with? Now I know some candidates have now been saying that the group of people who oppose the industrial park will stop an growth of aviation if the park does not go ahead, but that is simply not true. Nowhere does it say that more area can not be allocated for aviation-based business but I will not support an industrial park in that position, especially one that is apparently based around a likelihood of heavy-freight businesses. Who is paying for the type roads that are made to take that volume of heavy trucks? Sounds like another bypass-style budget crisis just waiting to happen. Now I am not against pushing to get more business and jobs to Orange but there are many areas around Orange that are already zoned industrial and we need to push to fill the vacant areas such as the old sale yards.

What specific uses for the former Electrolux factory will you pursue or support? Regardless of the fact council does not own the Electrolux site it is greatly in its interest to do everything in it's power to get in new tenants or owners with new jobs for our community. It certainly is ideally located for the rail maintenance hub that has been talked about and would be a great employer for Orange if we did somehow win that argument. We can not though afford to put all our eggs in that basket as we know there is a very high chance it will go to Dubbo. We need to try and get manufacturing jobs back in there in a perfect world. Manufacturers are who we should be trying to work with and encourage to bring their business and most importantly their jobs to Orange.

Do you agree with real estate agents and property developers being on council? Why or why not? Property developers are a definite no. Real estate agents fall in the same category as everyone else, is it a conflict of interest for you to be on council? For real estate agents if you advertise, sell, buy or lease land or property that the council is a stakeholder in than the answer is yes and you should not be on council.

What are the best ways council can help businesses prosper in the city? Orange needs to encourage new business to Orange with better incentives. We also need to concentrate on getting people back into the heart of our city. It's great to have a new Woolworths and Mcdonald’s out on the bypass but we must remember our businesses in the heart of the city and our main street. We do not want to end up with a main street that has every second shop vacant. One of the keys to getting shoppers back in the centre of Orange is better answered in the next question.

Is there enough parking in Orange? If not, where should additional car parks be constructed? We need to keep parking easy and accessible in the centre of town. Not just to encourage shoppers who will definitely drive somewhere else if they think parking will be easier but also for the people who work in the CBD. They are ratepayers and they deserve to be able to park their car in all day parking and have a reasonable walk to work. The old C Williams site is a reasonable option but there are other areas that also need looking at. Anyone who works in the DPI building will know that there are simply not enough parks in their underground car park, the eastern side of the railway car park or streets surrounding them which are packed door to door for blocks. 

Do you support the proposed purpose-built sporting complex council has acquired land for to the north of the city? The so called "field of dreams" is a real thorn in my side and something I can not support. The proposed amount that will be sought for a grant from government is $40 million dollars. This is money that could make Wade Park the high-class sporting venue that Orange needs. I would much rather get big events to town into the heart of our city, not have them turn on to the bypass, enjoy our great new facility and hit the road again maybe grabbing some Maccas if the kids have been good. Get them into the CBD where they will shop, patronise our great restaurants and cafes, stay in our hotels and sample our vast variety of vineyards. This will give visitors the experience and memories that we want them to have of Orange so they come back again and spread the word to their friends and family. Wade Park is going to have to be revamped regardless. So it really is also a massive money saver.

Are there any major projects you would champion if you elected? I have spoken about some of the projects I am passionate about in the above answers. Such as bringing business back to the CBD of Orange; stopping the proposed airport industrial park; building roads to at least a minimum acceptable standard; getting state government funding to make Wade park a landmark sporting venue; and encouraging more businesses to make Orange their first choice.

I don't see that the new council should be taking on any major projects that are not government funded at this time until they get their current roads, footpaths and other below standard infrastructure right first.