John McGrath, 3rd from left, pictured at the lunch with from left Brian Morris Suncorp, Trevor Oldfield Parramatta Chamber President, John McGrath and Paul Ogilvy Chairman Award Committee

There are certain business leaders whose reputations precede them and the opportunity to hear them share their views on business is often too judicious to pass up.

Over 80 members and guests did just that at the first in a series of promotional lunches for the Suncorp Western Sydney Awards for Business Excellence held at the Parramatta RSL Club on Friday 26 June. 

John McGrath, CEO McGrath Estate Agents, spoke passionately about the growth of his business and the importance of his staff as well as the importance of customer service. John also spoke about the importance of maintaining your brand. He encouraged those present to enter awards programs to encourage their staff and look at their businesses.

Mr David O’Neill, Group General Manager Castle Hill RSL Club Group, said that the Parramatta RSL Club was pleased to join the list of sponsors of the awards and to become more involved in the Parramatta Business Community.

The club provided an exceptional venue for the lunch in the Linden Room and was congratulated on their excellent food and first rate service. The Chamber can recommend the club to businesses looking for a venue for any type of event.

It is this passion for business success, as exhibited by Mr McGrath, that the Suncorp Western Sydney Awards for Business Excellence search for, recognise, reward and stimulate a focus on. The awards organising committee, in asking Mr McGrath to address a 2009 Awards promotional lunch, felt that businesses in western Sydney would benefit from the wisdom gained from his success, whilst exhibiting the attributes this year’s awards will be seeking.

The awards close on Friday 7 August and information about the awards is available at www.parramattachamber.com.au  or www.businessexcellenceawards.com.au  

BizNews Highlights

• Legislation passed in the upper house of NSW Parliament will enable councils to enter ventures with big developers and acquire privately held land in the vicinity of council's roads, said Ms Maureen Peatman, partner, Hunt and Hunt Lawyers who ran the successful Civic Place development appeal to the High Court.

• Council has introduced free parking after analysis demonstrated that the highest demand for 15-minute or briefer parking was located around such things as automatic teller machines, banks, the post office and library. The free parking is available at meters with a blue button in the area bounded by Marsden, Phillip, Smith and George streets, Civic Place, Darcy Street and in Church Street between Argyle and Campbell streets.

• A Harry's Cafe de Wheels will be established at the Fennel Street car park operating between 9am and 10pm from Sunday to Thursday and from 9am to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Trading beyond 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays will be trialled until February 2010.

• Council has nominated Lord Mayor Tony Issa and Cr Chiang Lim to be the council's representatives on the Sydney West Region Joint Regional Planning Panel. Under major changes to the state's planning laws last year, the panels will become the consent authorities for regional development applications. These include development applications for commercial, residential, retail and tourism valued from $10million to $100million and public and private community infrastructure and ecotourism valued at more than $5million.

• THE State Government could create almost 25,000 jobs and inject $1.4 billion a year into the economy by building new train lines in northwest and southwest Sydney and completing the Epping to Parramatta rail link. That is the finding of a new report commissioned by the Rail Tram and Bus Union that demands the Government maintain and extend the existing heavy rail network at a cost of almost $6 billion rather than focusing on the controversial Metro project.

• Hundreds of litres of ethanol spilled into a drain last week when an oil tanker crashed when trying to turn right into the Shell Oil Refinery in Durham St, Clyde. A NSW Fire Brigades spokesman said the tanker’s compartment ruptured on impact, causing up to 500L of fuel to spill. Durham St was closed for several hours as fire-fighters battled to stop the ethanol from leaking further into drains. A Shell spokesman said, “The spill was contained within the refinery’s internal drainage system and the product is being recovered from internal drains and will be re-processed.”

Viewpoint:

RiverCat Stays - For Now

The Chamber congratulates all those who helped secure the recent Budget announcement that the Parramatta RiverCat will be retained, at least for the next two years. Leading the charge was Chamber Immediate Past President Mr Roman Dechnicz, State MP for Parramatta Ms Tanya Gadiel, the councillors and staff of Parramatta City Council, the Parramatta Advertiser, and a host of others.

This win does come with a short window of opportunity to secure the long-term future of the ferry service. The announcement detailed $8 million invested over two years to retain the service.

Since its inception in 1992, the RiverCat’s status as a commuter vessel or a tourist vessel has been clouded and variable. The RiverCat requires to be integrated into Parramatta’s transport and tourism strategic plans. The Budget announcement opens the door for this by expanding the daily timetable and services.

The NSW Government is responsible for the RiverCat’s success as a commuter service. Much of the increasing numbers of commuters working in Parramatta are employed by or because of the NSW Government. Therefore the Chamber believes that the government should encourage and reward its employees to use the RiverCat.

The Chamber also believes the NSW Government should promote the RiverCat’s benefits as a commuter service. A need does exist for such a service exists and market awareness is now needed.

For the RiverCat to really succeed as a tourism service, it must be part of fully integrated tourism plan for Parramatta.

The responsibility for developing a fully-integrated tourism plan for Parramatta lies with Council and with the various businesses in the industry, with the assistance of Government agencies such as Sydney Ferries and Tourism NSW.

We have our ferry and two years to make it work. Sitting back on our hands won’t do the job. The support of businesses and potential commuters is needed to attract and maintain the RiverCat’s identified key markets.

***Upcoming Events

Business after Five
Meat & Wine Co
Tuesday 7 July
5.30 pm
Cost: $20.00 members and guests
$40.00 non members

Awards Information Session
Wednesday 15t July
Parramatta Chamber of Commerce
Level 1, 8-10 Palmer St
Parramatta
6pm – 8pm

Business Excellence Lunch
Friday 31 July
Courtyard by Marriott
12.30pm
Cost $70.00 per head includes 2 course meal and drinks

Contact Parramatta Chamber on 9683 6655 or info@parramattachamber.com.au or visit our website www.parramattachamber.com.au for more information or for an invitation to attend.

Platinum Supporter:
Suncorp

Major Supporters:
Parramatta City Council
Snap Printing
GWP Magazine