Eat St

Located in the heart of Eat St, Kouzina Greco Located in the heart of Eat St, Kouzina Greco Greek restaurant has been family run & owned Greek restaurant has been family run & owned by Alana & Peter Laliotitis since 2000. The by Alana & Peter Laliotitis since 2000. The success of this restaurant has come from their success of this restaurant has come from their unique way of combining excellent fresh & locally unique way of combining excellent fresh & locally sourced produce with warm Greek hospitality. sourced produce with warm Greek hospitality.

The menu has always been traditional with a The menu has always been traditional with a modern twist. The lamb Kleftiko is the signature modern twist. The lamb Kleftiko is the signature dish among other amazing delicacies. dish among other amazing delicacies.

Alana & Peter run the dining room and make Alana & Peter run the dining room and make you feel like part of the family, alongside them is you feel like part of the family, alongside them is their talented chef and are constantly striving for their talented chef and are constantly striving for perfection. perfection.

Located in the heart of Parramatta, close Located in the heart of Parramatta, close to public transport, theatres & shops Kouzina to public transport, theatres & shops Kouzina Greco has something for everyone. Catering for Greco has something for everyone. Catering for group bookings with set menus available, family group bookings with set menus available, family gatherings, work functions, dinner with friends or gatherings, work functions, dinner with friends or just a romantic dinner for two. With gluten free & just a romantic dinner for two. With gluten free & vegetarian options as well. vegetarian options as well.

Kouzina Greco has become an icon for the Kouzina Greco has become an icon for the past 20 years and we look forward to a long future. past 20 years and we look forward to a long future.

OUR KITCHEN IS OPEN OUR KITCHEN IS OPEN

Tuesday - Friday Lunch 12-3 PM. Tuesday - Friday Lunch 12-3 PM. Dinner 5.30-10 PM Dinner 5.30-10 PM

Saturday Dinner Saturday Dinner 5.30-10PM 5.30-10PM

For bookings and more visit: www.kouzinagreco.com.au

Parramatta’s new-look Eat Street is open!

Major light rail construction is now complete.

WHAT'S COOKING?

Explore #EatStreetUncovered – Transport for NSW’s new fun and vibrant urban playground. Tag us @ParramattaLightRail EAT ST IS ON THE MENU

DINE IN AND SUPPORT OUR FAMOUS PARRAMATTA DINING PRECINCT

PARRAMATTA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

PARRAMATTA’S NEW COUNCIL DIRECTION Focus on community and the arts

 STORIES BY DI BARTOK

BRINGING the community on board as Parramatta Council continues to build a premier city will be the focus of Lord Mayor Donna Davis’s work.

While making it clear that she and her Labor team want to continue the work done by the previous council, with the State Government’s partnership, Lord Mayor Davis highlighted a greater need for community consultation on all issues, especially those involving quality of life in the CBD and suburbs.

A vehement critic of the State Government’s apparent disregard for heritage in Parramatta–notably the demolition of historic Willow Grove and the Royal Oak hotel, Cr Davis said it was essential that council uses its “seat at the table” to make sure that heritage is better preserved in future developments.

“The Westmead Place Strategy (which will see the North Parramatta-Westmead area that takes in the historic Female Factory site transformed into a health and innovation hub) will bring changes to the area but we should still be pursuing World Heritage listing for the Female Factory,” Cr Davis said.

Donna Davis and Lisa Lake.

“The site, which includes the old jail, could be a wonderful destination for its historic value and would add to the city. Council has a role in advocating for preservation of that heritage.”

Cr Davis said that, while Parramatta was building on its position as a premier sporting, business and education destination, its other attributes of cultural and heritage attractions could not be overlooked.

Residents need to play a role

“I want to cement Parramatta’s standing as a premier arts and cultural destination through the development of Riverside Theatres that was started in the previous term of council,” Cr Davis said.

But, whatever needs to be achieved, Cr Davis is adamant that the community, the residents, will play a greater part in the process than before.

“We need to listen more to people on issues that aff ect them the most and to disseminate that information in our decisions,” Cr Davis said.

While riding high on Labor’s outstanding success at the December 4 election–electing seven councillors–three of them women–Cr Davis said she wanted all councillors to work together.

With the support of Greens Phil Bradley, Labor will eff ectively rule the Chamber of 15 councillors, so it is going to be an interesting term.

No-one can deny that Labor’s success is at least partly due to the Liberal Party not running candidates, due to factional in-fi ghting.

“Conservative voters did have options but they turned to us,” Cr Davis said.

Certainly, the new council is more diverse than the previous one, in terms of gender, age and physical abilities, one being legally blind.

There are eight new councillors, from across the board–Independents, Our Local Community and Labor, all ready and willing to learn from the veteran councillors.

Cr Davis is only the third female Lord Mayor and the fi rst one in the larger Parramatta City, after the 2016 council amalgamations.

Cr Davis grew up on a dairy farm in Tasmania and has raised her two sons, with her husband, in Dundas Valley.

Her deputy is Cr Sameer Pandey, who served in the previous council, in Parramatta Ward.

CUMBERLAND’S CITY FIRST APPROACH New mayor wants to work for all

LISA Lake plans on being a team player and involving the community more in council decisions during her term as Cumberland mayor.

Cr Lake, a councillor since 2012, is well-known for her community advocacy, particularly in fi ghting to save Wentworthville Pool and leading the successful battle against council’s plans to privatise childcare.

But Cr Lake comes to the job without any blazing ego.

“My job as mayor is to sell the city, to achieve the best for the community, not to promote myself,” Cr Lake said.

“Together we have to work on making Cumberland the best place it can be.”

The “we” means councillors and the community, as much as possible.

With Labor’s success in the December 4 election, it was inevitable there would be a Labor mayor, after the community voted in a record-breaking eight Labor councillors.

There also are a record number of women, fi ve in total, four from Labor and one from Our Local Community.

Diverse area with its share of concerns

Cr Lake said having more women on council will bring a diff erent perspective to community issues.

“Women have a diff erent approach, with a strong social justice perspective,” Cr Lake said.

This is a diverse area with a range of concerns, such as the high rate of family violence and homelessness, particularly with older women.

“Women bring a diff erent perspective to planning–we don’t just look at buildings but how they work as homes where people live and we would like to see more capital expenditure on parks and community facilities, such as libraries.

“We also have to help build bridges between the diverse groups in our community, and discuss ways to better deliver children's services and services for older people.”

Above all, the community needs to be brought more on board in council decisions aff ecting their lives, Cr Lake said, and she will be making sure this happens.

While the Liberal Party did not endorse candidates for Cumberland Council, a few sitting Liberal councillors ran as Independents, and were re-elected.

Cr Lake believes people turned to Labor as they felt the candidates were trustworthy and wanted to do the best for the community.

“There was a lot of letter-boxing of our brochures and talking to people,” she said.

“I want to thank all the people who worked so hard for us on the campaign.”

A resident of Wentworthville for more than 30 years, Cr Lake has worked as a solicitor but now looks forward to her fulltime stint as mayor of a burgeoning and buzzing city.

Kun Huang, a fellow Labor councillor, was elected deputy mayor.

Community Migrant Resource Centre (CMRC)

is a not-for-profi t, charitable organisation established in 1996. CMRC is a leader in the provision of specialised support services to newly arrived migrants, refugees and humanitarian entrants. CMRC works within a community capacity building framework to encourage individuals and multicultural communities to identify and address their own issues. It works in collaborative partnerships with a great number of agencies to provide services which have both an immediate and long term benefi t for the community. CMRC employs over 60 full time, part-time and casual multi-lingual staff .