After being inundated by floods for the first time in its history, Lismore Square will finally be back in business on July 6.
Every store in the centre had about 1.8m of floodwater go through it, requiring extensive cleanup and rebuild.
In past floods, the Square had been back up and running after just three days, but such was the damage, rebuild will take significantly longer.
MORE STORIES:
Mr McConaghy said they realised the importance of the shopping centre to people, not only as a place to get supplies, but also a meeting place, and part of people's everyday lives.
"We know it's important to re-establish habits. We understand our role," Mr McConaghy said.
He said the centre employs 1000 people, services 80,000 people, well beyond Lismore, and has 3 million visitors a year.
It's why they had 70 tradesmen on the ground in the first week, peaking to 190 in the days to follow - working six days a week to get the centre back up and running.
"We want jobs to be here," Mr McConaghy said. "We pulled out all the stops to get open in record time.
"The Lismore Square rebuild project has been monumental and the pace at which the collective re-build teams have worked is astonishing. Having worked in shopping centre construction and building for over 30 years, this has been the fastest build I can ever recall.
"This has in large part been possible through the dedication and focus shown by our contractors and building partners who have never wavered, despite facing a 2nd flooding event and ongoing weather conditions.
"I cannot thank our building partners enough for their support, they dropped everything and came from as far north as Townsville and as far south as Melbourne to the aid of Lismore. The team has been exceptional, and I can guarantee that Lismore Square will never have looked so good", Mr McConaghy said.
"Having been a part of the Lismore community for over 20 years we are just so proud to be able to re-open Lismore Square once again and restore this incredibly important part of the Lismore community. We know how much everyone relies upon 'The Square' and we have
been overwhelmed by the support we have received from the community, and we can't wait to welcome you all back on the 6th of July for the official opening of Lismore Square".
So far, Woolworths, Big W and some specialty stores will reopen on July 6, with Coles and Kmart to follow shortly after.
He said Big W was keen to open earlier than the planned date, and they working on ways to make that possible.
Mr McConaghy said it will take a little longer to reopen the food outlets, but temporary solutions will be in place to make it a better experience for shoppers.
He said all of the retailers were keen to come back and expected the centre to be fully operational, and "back to where we were" by the end of the year.
Not only that, Mr McConaghy said it will be better.
"If there is a silver lining, you get a brand new shopping centre," he said of the extensive rebuild.
"Every single shop will be brand new, with the latest fit out. It will look better, it will feel better, and it will smell better."
Mr McConaghy said the reopening of the centre and the return of major businesses to the area would help to build confidence in the community and to help encourage others to invest in Lismore.
"We look forward to rebuilding the economy and employment," he said.
