Gympie Region

Gympie Region
Queensland

Location within Queensland
Population 49,334 (2010)[1]
 • Density 7.1519/km2 (18.5234/sq mi)
Established 2008
Area 6,898 km2 (2,663.3 sq mi)
Mayor Mick Curran
Council seat Gympie
Region Wide Bay–Burnett
State electorate(s)
Federal Division(s) Wide Bay
Website Gympie Region
LGAs around Gympie Region:
North Burnett Fraser Coast Fraser Coast
South Burnett Gympie Region Coral Sea
South Burnett Somerset Noosa

The Gympie Region is a local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about 170 kilometres (110 mi) north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is between the Sunshine Coast and Hervey Bay and centred on the town of Gympie. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Shires of Cooloola and Kilkivan and part of the Shire of Tiaro.

The Regional Council, which governs the Region, has an estimated operating budget of A$50 million.

History

Deep Creek Bridge, 1893
Gympie General Hospital, 1935
Former Gympie Regional Council Chambers, 2012

The Gympie area was originally settled for grazing purposes. The discovery of gold in 1867 led to a gold rush and the development of the Mary River valley for closer agricultural pursuits.

The Widgee Divisional Board was incorporated on 11 November 1879 under the Divisional Boards Act 1879. On 3 July 1886, its western part separately incorporated as the Division of Kilkivan. With the passage of the Local Authorities Act 1902, both Widgee and Kilkivan became shires on 31 March 1903. On 21 November 1940, the Widgee Shire Council moved into new premises formerly occupied by the Bank of New South Wales at 242 Mary Street, Gympie.

The Municipal Borough of Gympie was incorporated on 25 June 1880, holding its first elections on 25 August. A town hall was built in 1890. It became a town under the new Act on 31 March 1903, and on 7 January 1905 was proclaimed a city by the Governor of Queensland.[2]

On 2 November 1993, the Shire of Widgee and the City of Gympie merged under the terms of the Local Government (Shire of Cooloola) Regulation 1993 to form the Shire of Cooloola. The first elections were held on 27 November 1993 and Adrian McClintock, the former Widgee chairman, was elected for a four-year term.

In July 2007, the Local Government Reform Commission released its report and recommended that Cooloola and Kilkivan amalgamate with part of the Shire of Tiaro. The first two councils opposed amalgamation, but in the event of amalgamation, thought the Commission's proposal the best option. Tiaro wished to amalgamate with the Shire of Woocoo and opposed the plan.[3]

On 15 March 2008, the three shires ceased to exist, and elections were held on the same day to elect eight councillors and a mayor to the Regional Council. Ron Dyne, the former mayor of Kilkivan, was elected as the region's first mayor.

Wards

The council remains undivided and its elected body consists of eight councillors and a mayor, elected for a four-year term.

Current Councillors/Mayor

The mayor of the Gympie Regional Council is Mick Curran,[4] following the resignation of Ron Dyne,[5] the former mayor of Kilkivan, in December 2014 due to health reasons. Ron Dyne died in February 2015.[6]

The councillors are:,[7]

Towns and localities

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. Estimates for the Tiaro component, not included in the figures below, are: 1,315 (1991); 1,695 (1996); 1,789 (2001) and 2,197 (2006).

Year Population
(Region total)		 Population
(Gympie)		 Population
(Widgee)		 Population
(Kilkivan)
1921 15,142 6,539 5,556 3,047
1933 20,722 7,749 8,686 4,287
1947 20,388 8,413 7,834 4,141
1954 22,026 9,964 8,139 3,923
1961 22,678 11,094 7,948 3,636
1966 22,114 11,279 7,490 3,345
1971 21,027 11,096 6,959 2,972
1976 22,171 11,280 8,240 2,651
1981 24,460 11,420 10,540 2,500
1986 27,118 11,430 12,970 2,718
1991 30,626 14,122 13,651 2,853
1996 34,901 15,099 16,637 3,165
2001 36,112 15,021 17,968 3,123
2006 39,478 16,454 19,616 3,408

References

  1. ↑ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 March 2011). "Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2009–10". Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  2. ↑ Queensland Government Gazette, 7 January 1905, p.1905:31.
  3. ↑ Queensland Local Government Reform Commission (July 2007). Report of the Local Government Reform Commission (PDF) 2. pp. 151–155. ISBN 1-921057-11-4. Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  4. ↑ "Mick Curran declared Gympie council mayor after by-election win". abc.net.au.
  5. ↑ "Ron Dyne resigns as Mayor of Gympie". Sunshine Coast Daily.
  6. ↑ "Former Gympie Mayor Ron Dyne loses battle with cancer". Gympie Times.
  7. ↑ Councillors' Profiles. gympie.qld.gov.au

External links

Media related to Gympie Region at Wikimedia Commons

Coordinates: 26°11′23″S 152°39′53″E / 26.18972°S 152.66472°E / -26.18972; 152.66472

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