Region. Council's catering bills

A Freedom of Information investigation by The Daily Telegraph has revealed that since January last year, Parramatta City Council, which only buys free-range chicken and eggs and refuses to use cling wrap, has spent $106,075 or an average $1262 per meeting. It uses three caterers, including one gold licence caterer from Crows Nest, Amory Catering, which is also the caterer of choice for Bankstown, The Hills, Pittwater, Strathfield and Auburn councils. Parramatta has a policy that leftovers from dinners go to disadvantaged groups, the paper said. Blacktown spends a lavish $1440 per meeting, about $61,000 each year, on caterers to serve roast dinners. The council with the lowest bill, Campbelltown, prepares its own meals, usually sausages, with soft drinks.

Region. Public meetings on transport

The Independent Public Inquiry, which has been established to create a long-term public integrated transport plan for Sydney, over the next 30 years, will hold a number of meetings in Greater Western Sydney, supported by The Sydney Morning Herald. Each meeting will focus on the issues in the local region or strategic corridor. The meetings will be held from 6.30pm-8.30pm at the following venues: North-West Sydney, Tuesday, September 15, Castle Grand, Castle Hill; South-West Sydney, Tuesday, September 22, Casual Powerhouse; Western Sydney corridor, Thursday, September 24, Riverside Theatre, Parramatta.

Region. Research fellowship awarded

The Federal Government has appointed Dr Zhong Tao as one of the nation's first Future Fellows, an initiative for promising mid-career researchers. Dr Tao, previously a full-time post doctoral research fellow with UWS, will return to the School of Engineering, which has one of Australia's best laboratories for testing and monitoring of heavy infrastructure. Dr Tao's research will investigate how stainless steel columns filled with concrete operate at different temperatures and in different working environments. Dr Tao's work will be carried out within the new Civionics Research Centre, at UWS, which is directed by Professor Brian Uy, and will involve an international collaboration with Professor Lin-Hai Han at Tsinghua University, one of China's most selective institutions. The fellowship, an initiative of the Australian Research Council (ARC), is worth $686,000 over four years.

Blue Mountains. Restaurants win top honours

Two of the region’s fine dining restaurants took top honours in the 25th anniversary edition of Sydney’s Good Food Guide, namely, Darley’s, at Katoomba, winning Best Regional Restaurant of the Year, and Restaurant Como, at Blaxland, winning the Silver Service Award. “Our reviewing and rating system is rigorous,” said editor, Joanna Savill. She said, more restaurants, right across Western Sydney, were being included in the guide for the first time with impressive scores for their food and service. “Just 10 years ago, the guide recognised only 14 restaurants in Greater Western Sydney, compared to 41 in the 2010 publication launched earlier this week,” said the Minister for Western Sydney, David Borger.

Norwest. New hospital complex open

Aspen Group has notified the ASX that settlement of the hospital component of the Norwest Private Hospital development was completed on September 3. The hospital component in the $125 million development was sold to Healthscope Limited for $61 million. A further $11 million of medical suites is expected to be settled this month. The hospital will replace the existing Baulkham Hills Private Hospital, which Healthscope plans to convert into a rehabilitation centre. The recently opened Norwest project, comprising 171 beds, 10 operating theatres, over 8000 square metres of strata suites and 690 car bays, was the second developed by ADF, for Healthscope, following completion of the Campbelltown Private Hospital in 2007.

Norwest. Cadbury moves sales office

Cadbury has signed a five-year lease with a five-year option over 431 square metres of space in the $75 million Burbank Corporate Centre, in Norwest Business Park, and will relocate its Sydney sales office to the site.

Parramatta. Fraud on the rise

A report from the Bureau of Crime Statistics shows that fraud in the Parramatta local government area (LGA) increased by 27.9 per cent to 1596 incidents in 2008. The increase in the period 2004-2008 was 7.7 per cent. The bureau’s June 2009 quarterly report shows fraud in Central Western Sydney (Auburn, Holroyd and Parramatta LGAs) stood at 2802 incidents, up 2.7 per cent on the same period in 2008.

Penrith. Loss turns into profit

Strict financial management and a packed schedule of crowd-pulling programs has seen Penrith’s premier cultural venue post its first profit in its three-year history, according to the Penrith Press. The paper has learned the Penrith Performing and Visual Arts, which comprises the Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Centre, the Q Theatre, Penrith Regional Gallery and the Conservatorium of Music, posted a profit of more than $100,000 in the last financial year; a turnaround from the $192,000 loss recorded in the previous year.