ARCHITECTS presented a schedule for preparing plans for the future of Garth House to members at the recent working party meeting in Bicester.

These plans will cover three different options that will be presented to the public for consultation in spring 2008.

Oxford-based architectural consultants, Berman, Guedes, Stretton presented the schedule to members of the Garth House Working Party at Bicester Town Council in Launton Road.

The three options include refurbishing the existing house, adapt and modify the existing building, or knock the existing house down and build a new one.

Deciding on the future of the the civic mansion which houses the town council offices, the Citizen Advice Bureau and the register office - is one of the council's biggest projects because it is in urgent need of repair and has been for some years.

Councillor Dan Sames said: "We have been looking at this for well over eight years. The town is growing, the council is growing in terms of operations and things it is taking on. We feel Bicester needs a civic building that the whole town can use. There is not a big enough space in the town to house large weddings so we want to be able to have a useable large civic space."

Berman, Guedes, Stretton has now begun work on preparing estimates and plans for these options in time for consultation at the end of April.