At the November 4 Council meeting, discussions included a DV Safe Phone initiative, changes to the loading zone in the Sale Street car park and a number of small donations.
Here are some key decisions.
Code of Meeting Practice
While the draft Code of Meeting Practice was already set to go on public exhibition, Council has now also agreed to advocate to the State Government for greater transparency around the recent mandatory changes.
Council will request that the rationale for these changes be made public and has asked the State Government to reconsider two provisions - allowing Councillors to attend meetings via audio link for any reason (not just medical or caring responsibilities) and permitting briefing sessions to be held for agenda business if those briefings are publicly available.
Fees and charges amendment
Following public exhibition, Council has approved two changes to its fees and charges:
- $0 fee for surrendering animals assessed as a risk to community safety.
- $0 fee for food premises inspections for charities and not-for-profit groups, helping reduce costs for community-supporting organisations.
DV Safe Phone initiative
Council has approved the installation of collection boxes for the DV Safe Phones initiative at Orange City Library and the Civic Centre Customer Service area for a trial period of 12 months.
The upfront cost for each box is $85, with an ongoing postage cost of approximately $6 per phone. Funding will come from Council's Crime Prevention Projects budget.
Westwinds DA approval
Council has approved a $7.6 million residential development on Breeze Road in north-west Orange. The development will start with an initial subdivision of the land into eight lots - seven standard Torrens Title lots and one larger lot for multi-dwelling housing with 18 dwellings. Once construction of the multi-dwelling development is complete, this larger lot will be further subdivided into 18 Community Title lots, with each lot containing a single dwelling.
DA approvals
Since the October 2025 meeting report period (16 September to 20 October 2025), 44 development applications have been approved. They include residential scale development applications as well as subdivisions, signage, demolition, and dwelling alterations. The DAs approved have a combined total of $11,753,920.
The Western Regional Planning Panel also approved a solar farm and battery energy storage system to the value of $16,026,011.
Funding for sporting organisations
Council will allocate funds from the 2025/2026 Sports Facility Partnership Program to the following:
- $10,773 to the Orange City Rugby Club for the installation of a player shelter structure for the No. 2 rugby field at Pride Park (Waratah Sports Club).
- $9,998 to Orange Waratah Soccer Football Club for the installation of two player shelters for the No. 2 soccer field at Waratah Sports Club.
- $5,261 to Orange Bridge Club for the upgrade of floor coverings at the Orange Bridge Club Clubhouse.
- $9,993 to Orange Hockey Inc. for supply and install of a new scoreboard for Smith Field at the Orange Hockey Centre.
- $15,000 to Orange District Junior Cricket Association for the upgrade of cricket pitch at Brendon Sturgeon Oval
- $1,325 to Goldseekers Orienteering Club for installation of permanent orienteering course at Lake Canobolas.
Sale Street car park loading zone
Council has approved changes to the Sale Street car park. The existing loading zone will be relocated 9.8 metres west, and the former loading zone in front of the Provincial Café will be converted into four additional car parks.
Zest Fest road closures
Council has approved the future closure of Byng Street (Lords Place to Peisley Street), McNamara Street (Byng Street to Summer Street) and Lords Place (Byng Street to Summer Street - south bound) for Zest Fest for the next two years.
Small donations
Council will give donations to the following:
- $1,250 to Springside Progress Association to contribute to repairing and painting windows/doors at Springside Schoolhouse.
- $1,500 to Wangarang Industries to contribute to a building an outdoor facility for supported employees and NDIS participants
- $1,500 to Orange Eight Day Games to contribute to the costs of repairs and maintenance of equipment including pushbikes, and printing/stationary costs.
- $1,500 to Metluma to contribute to running "Menopause in Orange" - a community education and awareness event, including sponsorship for attendance provided to 50 people unable to afford tickets.
- Council will support the Orange Chamber Music Festival with $10,000 (including in kind) for the 2026 Festival. This includes hire of the Orange Civic Theatre of a hire charge of approximately $4,000 and the South Court of $383.
