Russell Fitzpatrick targets infrastructure and housing for the NSW seat of Bega

It was a seat held by Liberal representative Andrew Constance for over 18 years until Mr Constance looked to move to federal politics, narrowly missing out on the seat of Gilmore at the last federal election by fewer than 400 votes.

Mr Fitzpatrick has long considered Mr Constance a friend and the two have been seen together as the campaign trail gets underway.

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As a councillor since 2009, mayor at the end of the last term and re-appointed in the current term at Bega Valley Shire Council, state politics have never been that far away.

"I was used to dealing with Andrew Constance; I could phone him and get things fixed, but there was nothing there after he left," Mr Fitzpatrick said.

He said he had always put his hand up to help the community and while he didn't know if he could do any better, he was happy to be tested.

His roots are very firmly in the area having attended Pambula Public School and Eden Marine High School. He has served on the board of Southern NSW Health, and with Pambula and Community Bank.

Mr Fitzpatrick is a Life Member of the Merimbula/Pambula Junior Rugby League Club and Group 16 Rugby League.

He has been a director of Sapphire Life Church and of Sapphire Life Opportunities, the charitable arm of the church.

If there's a issue in the shire, as mayor he's most likely to know those involved, or their parents.

He can often be seen chatting to cafe owners, talking in the pub, catching up with locals in the streets. The mayoral roster can be fairly intense at times with openings, community barbecues and official duties resulting in full weekends and evenings.

Time on the hustings will intensify that commitment, but Mr Fitzpatrick clearly enjoyed the interaction with the community.

Wasn't he worried about getting even more brickbats thrown his way as a state representative? With a special rate rise of 43 per cent over two years, on the table for Bega Valley Shire residents, as mayor he would have taken a few hits.

But he laughed it off saying people weren't that bad and talked about some things that make him want to do the job.

"Sometimes you don't know what is a win until you see the smiles on faces," he said.

He had just come from a community barbecue at Rocky Hall, celebrating the funding the community had to launch a community space and a book called 'Up Against The Elements' about their experiences of the Black Summer bushfires.

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"Probably 50 of the 55 people in the area were there - the other five didn't want to come because of the bushfire book, something that was still too raw for them and I respect that.

"We got a shower installed at the site so the RFS can come back, shower, sit and debrief and have a barbecue," he said with evident pride about the good outcome from something relatively simple.

"It's not always the big things that make the difference," he said.

But there are big things on his wish list, including more infrastructure for the area and affordable housing.

He questioned why people might haggle over a rate rise when their recently reassessed land values had doubled. He thinks older people may be better off selling the family home and moving into something smaller and thereby freeing up larger homes for younger families; it's been a theme in discussion at council over affordable housing and the supply of homes.

While he may be well-known in the Bega Valley, he is up against Labor's Michael Holland, the sitting MP who was better known further north in the electorate, having been a doctor at Moruya for 20 years.

But Mr Fitzpatrick points to his connections outside the Bega Valley such as chair of the Canberra Region Joint Organisation and having a seat on the Country Mayors Association of NSW executive committee.

In his role as mayor, he has been vocal in condemning cost shifting from state government to local councils and had advocated for a larger financial assistance grant, the annual hand out from the state government, which is untied money.

"The only way council's can generate fees and income is from fees and rates. But 70 per cent of our money goes on rural roads," he said.

Money has been announced for the sealing of Nethercote Road, Eden which provides the alternative route in the event of a closure on the southern section of the Princes Highway.

He also said the pothole fund would allow council "to do the job properly" rather than patch and spray which then gets washed out with the first heavy rainfall.

He sees Bega Pool as a major piece of infrastructure that needs replacement, saying it might have another five years left in its life but repairs would become more and more expensive.

"Ultimately we're going to need $20-25m for its replacement."

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In terms of regional health, Mr Fitzpatrick recognises that South East Regional Hospital, Bega was understaffed.

He said it was exacerbated by the GP shortage with people using hospitals instead of GPs but there was a move to use nurse practitioners to help the situation, something for which the Country Mayors Association had advocated.

He thinks using nurse practitioners as a medical level between nurses and doctors was a good idea because they can deal with many of the issues people want to see a doctor about and was pleased to see the nurse practitioner had been returned to Pambula Hospital after being moved over the holiday period.

Mr Fitzpatrick also thinks it's a good idea to have pharmacists writing some scripts, again to free up doctors.

He pointed to the early works underway at the site of the new $260 million Eurobodalla Regional Hospital.

"This state-of-the-art health facility will be a game changer and provide crucial support for our community."

The hospital will be a Level 4 health facility and include services such as intensive care, increased capacity for chemotherapy and increased access to renal dialysis, an MRI service and paediatric and maternity beds, and a special care nursery.

Asked about cost of living pressures, Mr Fitzpatrick said he was aware they were part of the pressures around rates and potential increases in Bega Valley.

"You go out and you're being asked to pay $50 for a steak," he pauses, "in Australia."

He said that he and wife Kerryann had noticed the hit to their own household budget.

"It's about supply and demand; we can't do anything about food but we can do something about logistics."

It's something he knows well having worked at Bobbin Transport, Pambula.

"Is there an alternative route through Brown Mountain," he questioned.

Mr Fitzpatrick wants to see $6-7m spent on a feasibility study to find a better route across the mountain.

He has dismissed Imlay Road, south of Eden as being too far south and not attractive for tourists.

On electricity costs Mr Fitzpatrick still believes there was a problem with baseload generation and doesn't think renewables were the answer.

"Electricity is still a problem," he said.

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