Southern Downs Region

Southern Downs Region
Queensland

Location within Queensland
Population 35,996 (2010)[1]
 • Density 5.05569/km2 (13.09417/sq mi)
Established 2008
Area 7,119.9 km2 (2,749.0 sq mi)
Mayor Tracy Dobie
Council seat Southern Downs, Queensland
Region Darling Downs
State electorate(s) Southern Downs
Federal Division(s) Maranoa
Website Southern Downs Region
LGAs around Southern Downs Region:
Toowoomba Toowoomba Lockyer Valley
Goondiwindi Southern Downs Region Scenic Rim
Goondiwindi Tenterfield (NSW) Tenterfield (NSW)

The Southern Downs Region is a local government area in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia, along the state's boundary with New South Wales. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Shire of Warwick and the Shire of Stanthorpe.

It has an estimated operating budget of A$22.8 million.

History

The majority of the former Warwick Shire is home to the Githabul people who have lived around this area for tens of thousands of years before arrival by Europeans in the early 1840s.[2]

The current area of the Southern Downs Region existed as two distinct local government areas:

The City of Warwick came into being as the Warwick Municipality on 25 May 1861 under the Municipalities Act 1858, a piece of New South Wales legislation inherited by Queensland at its separation two years earlier. On 21 July 1869, the Municipality of Allora was established under the Municipal Institutions Act 1864.

On 11 November 1879, the Clifton, Glengallan and Stanthorpe Divisions were created as three of 74 divisions within Queensland under the Divisional Boards Act 1879. In 1886, Rosenthal was created out of parts of Glengallan.

With the passage of the Local Authorities Act 1902, Warwick and Allora became Towns and the four Divisions became Shires. On 23 January 1915 the Town of Allora was abolished and a new Shire of Allora was created from the southern part of the Shire of Clifton.

On 4 April 1936, Warwick was proclaimed a city.

On 21 November 1991, the Electoral and Administrative Review Commission, created two years earlier, produced its second report, and recommended that local government boundaries in the Warwick area be rationalised. The Local Government (Allora, Glengallan, Rosenthal and Warwick) Regulation 1994 was gazetted on 20 May 1994. On 25 June, an election was held for the new Shire of Warwick, and on 1 July 1994, the original entities passed out of existence. Stanthorpe was unaffected by these changes.

In July 2007, the Local Government Reform Commission released its report and recommended that Warwick and Stanthorpe amalgamate. It noted that Warwick was the regional centre for the region, with the maximum travelling time between Warwick and any other town being one hour. Both councils opposed the amalgamation citing cultural differences and different river catchment areas and economic drivers.[3] On 15 March 2008, the two Shires formally ceased to exist, and elections were held on the same day to elect eight councillors and a mayor to the Regional Council.

Wards

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

Towns and localities

The Southern Downs Region includes the following settlements:

Warwick region

Warwick area:

Allora area:

Glengallan area:

Rosenthal area:

* - not to be confused with Willow Vale, Queensland

Stanthorpe region

** - acquired its name from one Private E Cotton a local who enlisted in the Australian Air Force

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
(Region total)		 Population
(Stanthorpe)		 Population
(Warwick)		 Population
(Allora)		 Population
(Glengallan)		 Population
(Rosenthal)
1933 25,016 6,934 6,664 2,624 6,334 2,460
1947 24,009 7,419 7,129 2,217 5,269 1,975
1954 25,862 8,335 9,151 2,106 4,639 1,631
1961 26,288 8,514 9,843 1,961 4,388 1,582
1966 25,917 8,503 10,065 1,890 3,906 1,553
1971 24,115 8,189 9,303 1,719 3,410 1,494
1976 24,583 8,709 9,169 1,666 3,491 1,548
1981 24,300 8,576 8,853 1,679 3,611 1,581
1986 26,270 9,143 9,435 2,041 3,688 1,963
1991 28,288 9,556 10,393 2,132 3,966 2,241
1996 29,563 9,596 10,896 2,234 3,990 2,742
2001 30,554 9,860 10,956 2,439 4,088 3,129
2006 31,385 9,968 11,143 2,437 4,169 3,558

References

  1. ↑ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 March 2011). "Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2009–10". Retrieved 11 June 2011.
  2. ↑ "Githabul people show their pride". Warwick Daily News. 13 August 2012. Retrieved 13 March 2014.
  3. ↑ Queensland Local Government Reform Commission (July 2007). Report of the Local Government Reform Commission (PDF). 2. pp. 297–301. ISBN 1-921057-11-4. Retrieved 3 June 2010.

Coordinates: 28°13′05.65″S 152°00′42.75″E / 28.2182361°S 152.0118750°E / -28.2182361; 152.0118750

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