The large new Leumeah centre (pictured), touted as a ``one-stop shop'' for families, has been under construction since November 2007.

Mr Panzarino said the building was making record time despite its opening initially planned for early, not mid-, 2009.

``A construction of this magnitude has an expected time frame of 24 months so if we open late August, it'll be 21 months,'' he said.

``Therefore, we've achieved a great milestone, regardless of all the setbacks.

``The builders have always planned to complete the centre in 16 months but the delays and setbacks have been unprecedented. We never knew that in the last 21 months we would've received a total of 128 rainy days, which constitutes over three months of delay.''

Mr Panzarino said the building had even flooded once. ``The builder was working day and night to pump the water out,'' he said.

Mr Panzarino said Panjo's interior should be complete within the next month. ``The inside has progressed fantastically, it's looking amazing,'' he said. ``Once Panjo is open, we'll be open forever.''