City of Blue Mountains

This article is about the local government area. For the general area surrounding the mountain range, see Blue Mountains (New South Wales). For the national park, see Blue Mountains National Park.

City of Blue Mountains New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates	33°42′S 150°18′E
Population	77,784 (2009)
Area	1,430 km² (552.1 sq mi)
Mayor	Daniel Myles (Liberal)
Council seat	Katoomba
Region	Blue Mountains
State/territory electorate(s)	Blue Mountains, Penrith
Federal Division(s)	Macquarie
Website	www.bmcc.nsw.gov.au
LGAs around City of Blue Mountains: Lithgow Hawkesbury Hawkesbury Lithgow City of Blue Mountains Penrith Oberon Wollondilly Liverpool

The Three Sisters, south of Katoomba, in Blue Mountains National Park, are a major attraction of the city.

The City of Blue Mountains is a local government area of New South Wales, Australia, governed by the Blue Mountains City Council. The city is located in the Blue Mountains range west of Sydney.

The Mayor of Blue Mountains City Council is Cr. Daniel Myles, a member of the Liberal Party.

Demographics

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, there:

• Were 75,770 people as at 30 June 2006, the 28th largest Local Government Area in New South Wales. It was equal to 1.1% of the New South Wales population of 6,827,694
• Was a fall of 505 people over the year to 30 June 2006. It detracted 0.9% from the 58,753 increase in the population of New South Wales
• Was, in percentage terms, a decline of 0.7% in the number of people over the year to 30 June 2006. In New South Wales the population grew by 0.9%
• Was an increase in population over the 10 years to 30 June 2006 of 890 people or 1.2% (0.1% in annual average terms), the 95th highest rate of a Local Government Area in New South Wales. In New South Wales the population grew by 622,966 or 10% (1.0% in annual average terms) over the same period.

Towns and villages in the local government area

The urban part of the city consists of a ribbon of close or contiguous towns which lie on the Main Western railway line, served by CityRail's Blue Mountains services, and Great Western Highway between Emu Plains and Lithgow. About 70% of the city's area is within the Blue Mountains National Park which lies north and south of the ribbon of towns. The National Park is part of the much larger Greater Blue Mountains Area World Heritage Site and the city brands itself as "The City Within a World Heritage National Park". The towns and villages are generally grouped into lower, mid, and upper mountains. The economy of the upper mountains is dependent almost entirely on tourism. The road to Sydney, the Great Western Highway, is mostly dual carriageway but is relatively slow due to the urban development and hilly terrain. An electric train service integrates into CityRail, Sydney's suburban rail network.

The main towns and villages in the City of Blue Mountain are:

• Bell
• Blackheath
• Blaxland
• Bullaburra
• Faulconbridge
• Glenbrook
• Hazelbrook
• Katoomba
• Lapstone
• Lawson
• Leura
• Linden
• Medlow Bath
• Mount Riverview
• Mount Victoria
• Springwood
• Sun Valley
• Valley Heights
• Warrimoo
• Wentworth Falls
• Winmalee
• Woodford
• Yellow Rock

Council

Current composition and election method

Blue Mountains City Council is composed of twelve Councillors elected proportionally as four separate wards, each electing three Councillors. All Councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The Mayor is elected by the Councillors at the first meeting of the Council. The most recent election was held on 8 September 2012, and the makeup of the Council is as follows:

Party		Councillors
	Australian Labor Party	5
	Liberal Party of Australia	4
	Independents	2
	The Greens	1
	Total	12

The current Council, elected in 2012, in order of election by ward, is:

Ward	Councillor		Party	Notes
First Ward		Michael Begg	Liberal
		Robert Stock	Independent
		Don McGregor	Labor
Second Ward		Chris van der Kley	Liberal
		Romola Hollywood	Labor
		Geordie Williamson	Greens
Third Ward		Daniel Myles	Liberal	Mayor
		Brendan Luchetti	Independent
		Mick Fell	Labor
Fourth Ward		Mark Greenhill	Labor	Deputy Mayor
		Brendan Christie	Liberal
		Anton Von Schulenburg	Labor

Blue Mountains Youth Council

The Blue Mountains Youth Council is a government-related youth voice program in the City of Blue Mountains. The Blue Mountains Youth Council was chartered in 2003 after being approved by the city council the previous year. The council was founded with the intention of encouraging youth participation in local politics, hence its affiliation with the city council. Membership requires a signed petition, and members are chosen based on a variety of conditions, including location, age, and diversity. In particular, the council encourages involvement by Aboriginals, disabled youth, and other minorities. In the past, the Youth Council has been responsible for organizing community youth events, as well as acting as a bridge between the city council and the youth of the community. The members also travel to various leadership conferences, and share information they learn with their peers. The Youth Council is supervised by an advisory committee, which is composed of four city Councillors. Although the advisory committee has no voting powers, the members serve as mentors to the group.

Sister cities

The City of Blue Mountains has sister city relationships with the following cities:

• Sanda, Hyōgo, Japan
• Flagstaff, Arizona, U.S.A.

External links

• Blue Mountains City Council Website
• Blue Mountains Gazette
• Blue Mountains
• Blue Mountains Youth Council