Rouse Hill. Green award for town centre

The GPT Group’s $470 million retail and community development, the Rouse Hill Town Centre, has won an energy award in the NSW Government’s Energy Smart Green Globe Awards 2009. The centre started as a “greenfield” development and has been used as a platform to trial new designs and technological efficiencies capable of reducing the ecological footprint of the asset.

Warwick Farm. Sleepmaker bid unacceptable

Pacific Brands has scrapped plans to sell the $80 million Sleepmaker bedding and foams business after a bid by a New Zealand buyer was not accepted. Sleepmaker’s operations include three factories including one at Warwick Farm. The Australian Financial Review said Pacific Brands may consider selling it once the broader economy improves.

North Ryde. Possible location for head office

The NSW Government, in its bid to host the head office of the $43 billion national broadband network (NBN), has listed North Ryde’s Global Business Centre, along with Redfern’s Australia Technology Park and Barangaroo, on Sydney Harbour, as possible locations. Premier Nathan Rees said Sydney’s nine data centres and the fact that the city accounted for 43 per cent of the national expenditure on telecommunications R&D made it the ideal location for the NBN headquarters.

South West. Rush for jobs

Hansen Yuncken, which was awarded a $414 million managing contractor project for 205 primary schools in South-West Sydney, under the Department of Education & Training’s Building Education Revolution (BER) program, received 1400 resumes for the 150 new staff jobs, and about 3000 expressions of interest from contractors, across NSW, for the 31 jobs now under way, according to The Australian Financial Review.