Pambula and District Community Bank board director Russell Fitzpatrick confirmed the Bendigo Bank branch has applied to extend its licence to Bega.

He said the Pambula branch had been looking for a suitable Bega location for the past 12 months and believed it had now been found with the relocation of Target and the interior renovations of the Carp St storefront by David Leser Building.

Representatives of Bendigo bank would now inspect the premises to see if it was suitable and complied with certain criteria.

“It’s all shaping up well,” Mr Fitzpatrick said.

“There’s a bit to do yet and criteria we have to meet, but it’s looking good.

“We definitely want to be in Bega.”

The Bendigo Bank is renowned for its commitment to the communities in which it sets up shop.

Mr Fitzpatrick said aside from dividends to shareholders, the Pambula and Community Bank puts all its profits back into the local community.

“In the five years since we started, we have put $300,000 back into the community,” Mr Fitzpatrick said.

Beneficiaries of this funding have included local small schools and sporting clubs among others.

“A lot of these projects that don’t get much publicity are some of the best you can do,” he said.

The local branch is also behind the Big Ideas Forum, from which several innovative local projects have received seed funding.

The community’s bank’s expansion into Bega is likely to take the form of a small “modular unit” located within a real estate agency planned for the Carp St building.

“The whole concept of banking is changing,” Mr Fitzpatrick said.

“We’re looking to create a community hub, not just a bank.”

Mr Fitzpatrick said the local Bendigo Bank branch had already started recruiting some staff for the Bega agency and was hoping to be open by July 1.

As for the remainder of the renovated former Target store, For Lease signs went up in the window this week so your guess is as good as ours!

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