Parramatta. $1 million for restoration

The University of Western Sydney has received close to $1 million, from the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, to carry out the next phase of restoration works of the historic Female Orphan School on the Parramatta campus. Once completed, UWS will use the ground floor and first floor of the West Wing for exhibitions, public meetings, functions, seminars and other events. The Female Orphan School is one of nation's most significant public buildings, standing as the first purpose-built orphanage in the colony of NSW. It is the oldest three-storey brick building in Australia. – the foundation stone was laid in 1813 – predating Hyde Park Barracks, in Sydney, and the Female Factory, in Parramatta.

Parramatta. $4 million seed funding

The University of Western Sydney has received a $4 million grant from the Federal Government to help develop a multi-million dollar science education and research precinct for the Parramatta campus. The grant will be used as seed funding to begin the first phase of its larger $40 million precinct project, which will include the staged re-development of existing facilities, as well as the construction of new, purpose-built laboratories and teaching spaces. "When completed, the precinct will triple the science, technology, engineering and mathematics student capacity, at Parramatta, in undergraduate and research degrees. It will also provide a critical pathway for students into research careers and help bolster the nation's capacity for science and technology research and innovation, “ said Vice-Chancellor, Professor Janice Reid

Region. Rees rules out breaking M4 promise

Premier Nathan Rees has ruled out breaking a promise to make the M4 free when a 20-year contract with Statewide Roads ends in February.

Blue Mountains. Green tea intersst

People in the Blue Mountains and further afield have expressed interest in farming green tea, said John Robb, owner, of Paradise Plants, a commercial nursery on the Central Coast, where two Japanese have a five-hectare plantation, near Gosford. They export to Japan. Green tea consumption in Australia has tripled in the past five years. “Depending on the age of the plant, gross income is between $6000 and $12,000 a hectare,” said Will Leckey, president, of the Australian Green Tea Growers Association, in The Australian Financial Review.

North Ryde. University in fund-raising drive

Macquarie University has embarked on a fund-raising drive as it steps up plans to build a $1 billion endowment fund for future activities. The university will launch a fundraising foundation on November 25. The university hopes to raise about $5 million in cash, pledges and confirmed bequests, in 2010, according to The Australian Financial Review.