Moreton Bay Region
| Moreton Bay Region Queensland |
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 Moreton Bay in south-eastern Queensland |
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| Population: | 382,280(2010)[1] | ||||||||||||
| Established: | 2008 | ||||||||||||
| Area: | 2011 km² (776.5 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Mayor: | Allan Sutherland[2] | ||||||||||||
| Region: | South East Queensland | ||||||||||||
| Federal Division: | Petrie, Dickson, Longman, Fisher | ||||||||||||
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The Moreton Bay Region is a Local Government Area located in South East Queensland, Australia, immediately to the north of Brisbane, the state capital. Established in 2008, it replaced three established local government areas, the City of Redcliffe and the Shires of Pine Rivers and Caboolture.
With an estimated operating revenue of A$297 million and a population of over 350,000, Moreton Bay is the third largest local government in Australia behind City of Brisbane and Gold Coast City, both of which are also amalgamated entities.
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[edit] History
Moreton Bay was, at the time the Divisional Boards Act 1879 came into force on 11 November 1879, entirely contained within the Caboolture Division, which covered not only Moreton Bay but also much of the Sunshine Coast. By 1890, Caboolture Division had shrunk considerably with the separate incorporation of the Pine Division (21 January 1888), Redcliffe Division (5 April 1888) and Maroochy Division (5 July 1890).
With the passage of the Local Authorities Act 1902, Caboolture, Pine and Redcliffe (as well as Maroochy) became Shires on 31 March 1903. Redcliffe was proclaimed a Town on 28 May 1921 and a City on 13 June 1959. A few weeks earlier, on 23 May 1959, Pine was renamed the Shire of Pine Rivers.
In July 2007, the Local Government Reform Commission released its report and recommended that the three areas amalgamate.[3] It argued that the area was part of the South East Queensland Regional Plan's Urban Footprint, and would attract 11% of the region's population and housing growth to 2006. A very strong community of interest was identified through the region's links and dependencies to Brisbane. The councils disagreed with the Commission's plans although, with the exception of Redcliffe, did not oppose alternative amalgamation options. On 15 March 2008, the City and Shires formally ceased to exist, and elections were held on the same day to elect councillors and a mayor to the Regional Council.
[edit] Wards and councillors
Moreton Bay Region is divided into 12 divisions, each of which elects one councillor to the Regional Council. Additionally, the entire Region elects a mayor. Allan Sutherland was elected as the Region's first mayor at the 2008 elections. The councillors elected were:
- Division 1 - Gary Parsons
- Division 2 - Chris Whiting
- Division 3 - Greg Chippendale (Deputy Mayor)
- Division 4 - Julie Greer
- Division 5 - James Houghton
- Division 6 - Rae Frawley
- Division 7 - David Dwyer
- Division 8 - Mick Gillam
- Division 9 - Mike Charlton
- Division 10 - Brian Battersby
- Division 11 - Bob Millar
- Division 12 - Adrian Raedel
[edit] Unity Water
On July 1, 2010, Moreton Bay Regional Council's Water Services (along with Sunshine Coast Regional Council), moved over to the recently created water body, Unity Water. Unity Water was created by the Queensland Government as part of the State's takeover of South East Queensland's water facilities, dams and water supply networks. Moreton Bay and Sunshine Coast Regional Councils own 50% of Unity Water.
The creation of Unity Water and the movement of staff from the Council's payroll has enabled the Council's to claim reduced costs to ratepayers, whilst still falling far short of the 10% to 15% reduction in local government charges promised by the Beattie/Bligh governments as the rationale for the council amalgamations.
[edit] Suburbs
Suburbs and localities which encompass the Moreton Bay Regional Council include:
[edit] Population
The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008. The next census, due in 2011, will be the first for the new Region.
| Year | Population (Total) |
(Caboolture) | (Pine Rivers) | (Redcliffe) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | 11,928 | 5,316 | 4,604 | 2,008 |
| 1947 | 19,402 | 5,716 | 4,815 | 8,871 |
| 1954 | 27,267 | 7,101 | 6,309 | 13,857 |
| 1961 | 39,312 | 8,877 | 8,761 | 21,674 |
| 1966 | 50,785 | 10,149 | 13,309 | 27,327 |
| 1971 | 72,955 | 12,207 | 26,187 | 34,561 |
| 1976 | 103,669 | 19,404 | 45,192 | 39,073 |
| 1981 | 133,056 | 32,644 | 58,189 | 42,223 |
| 1986 | 166,210 | 47,494 | 73,783 | 44,933 |
| 1991 | 205,743 | 70,052 | 87,892 | 47,799 |
| 1996 | 250,077 | 98,859 | 103,192 | 48,026 |
| 2001 | 280,765 | 112,458 | 119,236 | 49,071 |
| 2006 | 325,219 | 132,473 | 141,414 | 51,332 |
[edit] References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 March 2011). "Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2009–10". http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Products/3218.0~2009-10~Main+Features~Queensland?OpenDocument. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
- ^ Election summary (ECQ)
- ^ Queensland Local Government Reform Commission (July 2007). Report of the Local Government Reform Commission. 2. pp. 234–239. ISBN 1921057114. http://www.dlgp.qld.gov.au/resources/map/reform/north-moreton-rationale.pdf. Retrieved 3 June 2010.
[edit] External links
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