In more recent years, Lawson was at the centre of controversy due to an ongoing government proposal to widen the Great Western Highway. The highway was a single lane in each direction through the town; the proposed plan by the Roads and Traffic Authority for widening necessitated the removal and relocation of the existing shops and the demolition of the Lawson Community Centre, formerly known as the Mechanics' Institute Hall, which dated back to 1903. Groups opposed to the demolition claimed the hall could be re-sited; others claimed this would be too costly, that the building was in poor repair and contained dangerous levels of asbestos. There was also a group lobbying for the retention of the shops on heritage grounds. By the end of 2008, the Community Centre had been saved.