Fraser Coast Region Explained

Type:lga
Fraser Coast Region
State:qld
Image Upright:0.81
Mayor:George Seymour
Pop:111032
Area:7105
Area Footnotes:[1]
Est:2008
Seat:Hervey Bay
Region:Wide Bay–Burnett
Stategov:Maryborough
Stategov2:Hervey Bay
Fedgov:Hinkler
Fedgov2:Wide Bay
Logo Upright:1.2
Url:frasercoast.qld.gov.au
Near-Nw:Bundaberg
Near-N:Bundaberg
Near-Ne:Coral Sea
Near-W:North Burnett
Near-E:Coral Sea
Near-Sw:Gympie
Near-S:Gympie
Near-Se:Gympie

The Fraser Coast Region is a local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about 250km (160miles) north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is centred on the twin cities of Hervey Bay and Maryborough and also contains K'gari. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Cities of Maryborough and Hervey Bay and the Shires of Woocoo and most of Tiaro. The resident population at the 2021 census was 111,032 and the estimated population in 2023 was 117,940.[2]

The 2021-2022 budget of the Fraser Coast Regional Council is $387 million.[3]

In the, the Fraser Coast Region had a population of 111,032 people.

History

Butchulla (also known as Batjala, Badtjala, Badjela and Badjala) is the language of the Fraser Coast region, including K'gari. Butchulla language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the Fraser Coast Regional Council, particularly the towns of Maryborough and Hervey Bay extending south towards Noosa and northwest to Howard.[4]

Prior to the 2008 amalgamation, the Fraser Coast Region existed as four distinct local government areas:

On 10 March 1861, the Municipal Borough of Maryborough, governed under the Municipalities Act 1858 which had been inherited from New South Wales upon the separation of Queensland in 1859, was proclaimed, becoming the sixth municipal government in Queensland. Henry Palmer was appointed as its first Mayor.

On 11 November 1879, when the Divisional Boards Act 1879 came into effect, the Antigua and Burrum Divisions were created around what is now Hervey Bay, and on 15 September 1883, the Granville Division was established to serve the district surrounding Maryborough. A later division, Howard, was split away from the Division of Isis in 1900.

With the passage of the Local Authorities Act 1902, all four divisions became Shires on 31 March 1903, and Maryborough became a Town. On 7 January 1905 Maryborough achieved City status, and a Town Hall was built on the corner of Kent and Adelaide Streets and became the administrative centre of the City.

At around this time, the Shire of Degilbo, later renamed Biggenden, split away on 3 June 1905. On 23 December 1905, Burrum was renamed Pialba.

On 17 February 1917, the Granville, Antigua and Pialba shires were dissolved, and split between a new Shire of Burrum and the Shire of Woocoo, which had been gazetted three years earlier. By the 1920s the Hervey Bay area was rapidly expanding due to continuing growth in the primary industries such as sugar cane, citrus, pineapples, beef cattle and fishing, as well as investment in transport infrastructure. In the 1950s and 1960s, population and development increased, and the coastal towns slowly merged into a single urban area.

On 20 December 1975, but effective from 27 March 1976 local government elections, the Shire of Burrum was renamed the Shire of Hervey Bay. With the new focus on the coastal region, 1086.41NaN1 of its area, with an estimated population of 1,119, was annexed by the City of Maryborough, while 12691NaN1 with an estimated population of 2,629 was annexed by the Shire of Woocoo.

In September 1977, the Shire of Hervey Bay received Town status, and on 18 February 1984 it became a City.

The Local Government (Maryborough and Woocoo) Regulation 1993, which took effect on 31 March 1994, effected the City's annexation of about 700km2 of the Shire of Woocoo. At this time, Maryborough was resubdivided into eight divisions each with one councillor, plus an elected mayor.

On 15 March 2008, under the Local Government (Reform Implementation) Act 2007 passed by the Parliament of Queensland on 10 August 2007, the City of Hervey Bay merged with the City of Maryborough, Shire of Woocoo and part of Tiaro to form the Fraser Coast Region.[5]

Wards

The council consists of ten councillors and a mayor, elected for a four-year term. Each of the councillors represent one of the ten divisions.

Towns and localities

The Fraser Coast Region includes the following settlements:

Urban Hervey Bay:

Rural Hervey Bay:

Maryborough area:

Woocoo area:

North Tiaro - Division 1 area:

North Tiaro - Division 2 area:

1 - split with Gympie Region

Libraries

The Fraser Coast Regional Council operates public libraries at Burrum Heads, Pialba (Hervey Bay), Howard, Maryborough (John Anderson), Maryborough (Toys and Special Needs), and Tiaro (Tom Gee Memorial).[7]

Demographics

The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008. The 2011 census was the first for the new Region.

YearPopulation
(Region total)
Population
(Maryborough)
Population
(Hervey Bay)
Population
(Woocoo)
Population
(Tiaro)
1933 22,170 11,415 6,835 777 3,143
1947 26,453 14,395 8,642 750 2,666
1954 29,587 17,952 8,408 660 2,567
1961 30,962 19,126 8,991 640 2,205
1966 31,607 19,659 9,271 567 2,110
1971 32,347 19,257 10,737 491 1,862
1976 37,118 21,527 10,304 3,412 1,875
1981 44,454 21,530 16,402 4,456 2,066
1986 48,308 22,430 20,660 2,700 2,518
1991 60,560 22,977 30,867 3,429 3,287
1996 74,210 24,681 42,391 2,902 4,236
2001 77,837 24,465 45,959 2,964 4,449
2006 90,806 25,705 56,427 3,351 5,323
2011 95,312
2016 101,504
2021 111,032

Current Councillors/Mayor

The current mayor of the Fraser Coast Regional Council is George Seymour elected in a by-election held in May 2018 and re-elected in 2020 and 2024.[8] [9] The by-election followed the dismissal of Chris Loft as Mayor on 16 February 2018 by the Minister for Local Government, Stirling Hinchliffe who alleged Mr Loft made "serial breaches of the Local Government principles outlined in the Local Government Act."[10] [11]

As at 2024, the councillors are

List of mayors

See also

External links

-25.2913°N 152.8309°W

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017-18: Population Estimates by Local Government Area (ASGS 2018), 2017 to 2018 . Australian Bureau of Statistics. Australian Bureau of Statistics. 27 March 2019. 25 October 2019. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018.
  2. Web site: Fraser Coast Regional Council - Population and Dwellings. idcommunity. 22 April 2024.
  3. Web site: Council budget about planning and building for our future. Fraser Coast Regional Council. 27 September 2021.
  4. Web site: Indigenous languages map of Queensland. 2020. State Library of Queensland. 21 January 2020.
  5. Book: Report of the Local Government Reform Commission. Queensland Local Government Reform Commission. 2. 129–135. 978-1-921057-11-3. July 2007. 11 June 2011. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110407141439/http://www.dlgp.qld.gov.au/resources/map/reform/fraser-coast-rationale.pdf. 7 April 2011. dmy-all.
  6. 13 September 2015.
  7. Web site: Location and hours. Fraser Coast Regional Council. https://web.archive.org/web/20180131012257/http://www.frasercoast.qld.gov.au/location-and-hours. 31 January 2018. live. 31 January 2018.
  8. Web site: 2018 Fraser Coast RC Mayoral By-Election - Fraser Coast Regional Council - Undivided Council Summary. 14 May 2018. Electoral Commission of Queensland. https://web.archive.org/web/20180514032147/http://results.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/FCR18/results/district1.html. 14 May 2018. live. 14 May 2018. dmy-all.
  9. News: Fraser Coast voters choose George Seymour as new Mayor in by-election, replacing sacked councillor, Chris Loft. Goetze. Eliza. 6 May 2018. ABC News. 14 May 2018. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20180512065708/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-06/george-seymour-claims-victory-in-fraser-coast-by-election/9731434. 12 May 2018. dmy-all.
  10. Web site: Fraser Coast Mayor Chris Loft sacked by Local Government Minister. ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 20 March 2018.
  11. Web site: More Queensland council turmoil with Fraser Coast mayor sacked. The Australian. News Corp Australia. 20 March 2018.
  12. Web site: 2008 Fraser Coast Regional Council - Mayoral Election - Election Summary. results.ecq.qld.gov.au. 4 April 2016.
  13. Web site: 2012 Fraser Coast Regional Council - Mayoral Election - Election Summary. results.ecq.qld.gov.au. 4 April 2016. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20160413084639/http://results.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/LG2012/FraserCoastRegionalCouncil/results/mayoral/summary.html. 13 April 2016. dmy-all.
  14. Web site: 2016 Fraser Coast Regional Council - Mayoral Election - Election Summary. results.ecq.qld.gov.au. 4 April 2016. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20160323165043/http://results.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/LG2016/FraserCoastRegionalCouncil/results/mayoral/summary.html. 23 March 2016. dmy-all.
  15. Web site: Sacked Fraser Coast mayor Chris Loft to fight dismissal in court. Brisbanetimes. Fairfax Media. 20 March 2018.
  16. Web site: 2020. 2020 Local Government Elections: Saturday, 28 March 2020. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201223051226/https://prodresults.elections.qld.gov.au/lga2020. 23 December 2020. 16 June 2020. Electoral Commission of Queensland.