When five officials ceremonially dug into a dusty field in the centre of Orange 585 days ago a new home for 700 workers was a pipedream.
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But fast forward to today and the new home for the Department of Primary Industries and other state government departments in Orange is about to become a reality.
The first sod was turned on the former Orange Base Hospital site in January 2019.
This week government officials will be taking possession of the building from construction workers.
Caroline Myers, the executive director of Property, Fleet and Procurement for the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, said it was a milestone.
"It is so exciting, the staff are really happy," she said.
Ms Myers said staff had begun packing up equipment at offices in Orange in preparation for moving into the new building next month.
Before that government staff will move in to begin preparing the interior and ensuring all systems are functioning for the workers.
Ms Myers said the building would house workers from various departments including the DPI, the DPIE, Regional NSW, Premier and Cabinet and the Education department.
"There will be 700 staff to start with," she said.
However, in this COVID-19 world most government staff are still working from home so not everyone will be on deck straight away.
She said the work spaces had been designed to be "agile" and flexible to adapt to changing social distancing rules.
For example, many departments have field workers who do not need a permanent desk space, meaning facilities can be shared between staff.
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