Parramatta. $100 million office tower for CBD

St Hilliers Property Group plans to lodge a DA with Parramatta City Council for a $100 million, 13-storey office building of 18,000 square metres, in Argyle Street, opposite the Parramatta Interchange and the head office of Sydney Water under construction, on the corner of Darcy and Smith streets. Construction could commence in May 2009 with a completion date in early 2011, according to The Australian Financial Review. The Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation sold the 2579-square-metre vacant site for $22 million, to St Helliers, in January.

Parramatta. Premier commits $5 million

The NSW State Government has committed $5 million to the building of a new state-of-the-art gallery space in Parramatta. Parramatta City Council will provide $16 million towards the New Generation Gallery, which is planned to be part of the proposed $1.4 billion Civic Place project. “This commitment from the NSW State Government highlights their continuing priority of providing cultural facilities in the region of Western Sydney for future generations,” the Lord Mayor, Paul Barber, said.

Region. Ramp up of 'secondary dwellings'

Premier Morris Iemma will arrange for an urgent meeting with the building and construction industry to discuss the potential to quickly ramp up supply of “secondary dwellings”, to ease the rental squeeze. He defined such dwellings as small self-contained units or studios added on to existing homes. Mr Iemma was speaking at the State of the Region address, which attracted some 450 business people from Western Sydney. The event was organised by the Western Sydney Business Connection, in Parramatta.

Parramatta. Wipro increases staff in the CBD

Wipro, one of India’s largest software services firms, has boosted its staff numbers at its Sydney Development Centre, by more than 60 per cent in the four months it has been operating in Macquarie Street, in the Parramatta CBD. The initial staff complement was 30 and this has been increased to around 50 people. The company declined to identify its clients for confidential reasons.