BizBriefs. Parramatta and Western Sydney

$1.6 million for legal fees
Parramatta City Council has allocated $1.6 million for potential legal costs should it lose its appeal in the Court of Appeals against the decision by the Land and Environment Court that it could not compulsory acquire several properties in Darcy Street, as part of the $1.4 billion Civic Place project. The appeal will be heard on May 1-2 next year.
Poker machine company's move
Poker machine company, Aristocrat, expects to relocate its head office, and 750 staff, from Lane Cove to North Ryde at the end of 2008. In the coming 12 months the company will trial technologies new to the industry, most notable server-based gaming, which works by connecting all terminals in a gaming operation to one central server enabling new games to be uploaded to individual machines, thus eliminating the need for players to switch terminals.
'Outstanding success'
"Sydney Olympic Park (SOP) has been an outstanding success, despite some initial scepticism about the precinct's viability after the Olympics. By 2025 it is anticipated SOP will support a daily population of over 20,000 workers," said Michael Issenberg, Accor Asia Pacific's MD, when announcing that the $50 million Pullman Sydney Olympic Park hotel was due to open in August 2008.

Package attracts investors to Parramatta

"To single out one key feature about Parramatta's current attractiveness to commercial investors is difficult," according to Phillip Bradac, associate director, of Colliers International, in council's publication, Business News.
"The city is very competitive across a number of key areas. You are getting quality commercial space at a very affordable price. You have a highly-skilled local workforce on your doorstep which is easily accessible by good public transport infrastructure. It's what Parramatta offers as a complete package that is the major attractive proposition for business.
"The city's growing cultural attractions, its theatres, cafes and parklands, should not be underestimated either. They add to the entire Parramatta experience and ultimately a better return on your investment," he said.

Saving waste from landfill

Parramatta, Holroyd and Bankstown councils have signed a memorandum of undestanding for a joint tender to process up to 100,000 tones of garbage at one treatment plant. The tender will be decided in July 2008 with the new waste facility ready for operation by 2010.
The facility will turn 80 per cent of the garbage into either compost or green energy through methane collection. This is on top of the green waste and dry recycable components of the waste stream that are already recycled at the rate of 95 per cent, Parramatta council said.
"This exciting initiative ... will allow council to exceed NSW government targets of diverting 66 per cent of waste from landfill by 2114 ... we expect to achieve 82 per cent of waste diverted from landfill by 2012," said Parramatta Lord Mayor, Paul Barber.

Westmead trial could be on COAG agenda

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's No 1 priority is better run hospitals and when he meets state and territory leaders at the COAG meeting in Melbourne on Thursday, December 20, a report based on a trial at The Children's Hospital at Westmead on the use of IT to improve staff productivity may be on the agenda, in the hope of attracting funding.
In 2006, a trial of wireless voice and data communication involving 80 clinicians was conducted at the hopsital. The clinicians liked it and trial results showed significant savings in patient waiting and treatment times.
Aegis Consulting Australia, engaged to independently assess the economic value of the results and prepare a report for NSW Health, which along with state Treasury, were impressed but could not fund the permanent application of the technoloogy, which Aegis found would cost $4 million but deliver productivity improvements worth $35 million over four years.

Bennelong chooses Parramatta

The privately-owned, diversified international investment company, Bennelong Group, based in Melbourne, chooses properties in non-central CBDs, like Parramatta and Camberwell, in Victoria, because of tenant demand.
"It's a value proposition because of tenant retention, vacancy rates, capital growth and you don't have the boom and bust cycles that demand and supply tend to inflict on CBD markets," said chairmam Jeff Chapman.
Bennelong owns 11 properties in non-central business district markets in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Canberra, with about 65,000 square metres in combined gross lettable area.

BizBriefs. Parramatta and Western Sydney

Custodian of millions
Bev Manton, chairwoman, of the Parramatta-based NSW Aboriginal Land Council, is the custodian of the council's investment fund of $700 million and a land portfolio of more than 616,460 hecatres with an unimproved capital value of more than $2 billion.
Borders will have to wait
Borders Parramatta store, like 21 others around Australia, will have to wait until January 30 before the ACCC announces its decision on Pacific Equity Partners, owners of Angus & Robertson, bid to purchase the chain for $130 million. The decision was expected on Wedneaday, December 19.
Mining boom
UWS Pro Vice-Chancellor, Stuart Campbell, said "the mining boom, big salaries and limitless jobs" could be behind the surge in first-year students enrolling in engineering faculties.