Yagoona, New South Wales

Yagoona, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is 20 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is a part of the South-western Sydney region. Yagoona is an Aboriginal word meaning 'now' or 'today'.

Yagoona was known as the site of the first McDonald's restaurant to open in Australia, in 1971.

History
Before European settlement, the area was originally occupied by the Bediagal people.

The area now known as Yagoona, Bass Hill, and north Bankstown was once known as Irish Town, due to the high concentration of Irish rebels transported here from Ireland in the late 1700s. Land grants were issued to Irish families and finally the suburb of Yagoona was created in 1927. St Matthew's Anglican Church was built on Liverpool Road (now Hume Highway) in 1861 to cater for the Protestants of the district as well as to function as a school.

Commercial area
The main commercial area is located on the Hume Highway (Liverpool Road), near Yagoona railway station. In 1963, the Westfield Group built a supermarket on a vacant lot on the highway; the store opened as Coles New World, later became Franklins, and then IGA. Yagoona was home to the first McDonald's restaurant in Australia, opened in 1971, but it closed in the 1990s.

Over recent years this shopping strip has been in economic decline as a consequence of major banks (Commonwealth, National Australia, State and Westpac) and retailers leaving. Residents now find it more convenient to shop at nearby Bass Hill Plaza or further away at Chester Hill, Bankstown (Centro Bankstown, formerly Bankstown Square) or Parramatta (Westfields). There have been some plans to rejuvenate the town centre in Yagoona in recent years by Bankstown City Council. "Initial suggestions, already supported by residents and visitors, include a larger supermarket, a new community centre, improved shopping environment, and a variation in housing."

Retailers here include an IGA Supermarket, a KFC fast food outlet, Australia Post, a number of discount stores, mixed businesses, three pharmacies, a fruit shop, bakery, a newsagent, a real estate agent, several cafés, furniture stores and medical centers. Another Australia Post is on Dargan Street, Yagoona West.

In 2006 a Salvation Army store opened in the town centre (where the Blockbuster videos store was once located and previously a Pizza Hut), which later was suspiciously destroyed in early January 2010. The fancy dress store next to the medical centre/pharmacy was originally occupied by the post office. Previous businesses in and around the main commercial area include Top Video (burnt down in 1995), Video Ezy, State Bank (which closed in the 90s and is now a medical centre and pharmacy), a fruit and vegetable market and a liquor store next to the supermarket (now both furniture stores), Franklins supermarket (now IGA), a newsagency next to the railway station (later a cafe until an explosion closed it), a photo shop (now a discount store).

The head office of RSPCA NSW, plus a shelter, is located along Rookwood Road in this suburb.

Transport
Yagoona railway station is on the Bankstown line of the Sydney Trains network. A number of bus services link Yagoona to Bankstown and Parramatta. Yagoona is located some 5–10 minutes from Bankstown Central Business District and about 10–15 minutes from Parramatta CBD.

The Hume Highway cuts through Yagoona and is the main road access for Yagoona to Liverpool and Sydney City; and Rookwood Road connects south to Stacey Street/Fairford Road (Entrance to the M5), and north to Silverwater Road (Access to the M4). A 30 metre pedestrian bridge costing A$2.3 million linking the side footpaths of Hume Highway was built in 2006, primarily to ensure easy and safe access travel in this area for the students of Yagoona Primary School. Lifts are located at each end to ensure easy access for those with disabilities. The construction of the bridge was funded by the Government of New South Wales. The bridge will also help streamline Hume Highway traffic by removing the previous set of traffic lights.

Schools
There are three Primary Schools in Yagoona:
 * Yagoona Public School
 * Christ the King Catholic School
 * Al Sadiq College is an Alawite Muslim School (Kindergarten and Years 1 to 4) that was recently built close to Yagoona's Town Centre, at 178 Cooper Road, to cater for the growing Alawite population.

There are no high schools in the suburb. Most students attend high schools in adjoining suburbs, normally Birrong, Bass Hill, Bankstown, Condell Park or Sefton.

Parks
Yagoona is home to Gazzard Park, George Green Oval, Gillman Reserve, Middleton Park, Graf Park and O'Neill Park. All the parks contain various sporting facilities and play equipment.

Churches
Yagoona has seven places of worship. These include:
 * Yagoona Anglican Church
 * Yagoona Baptist Church
 * Christ the King Catholic Church
 * Yagoona Christadelphian Ecclesia
 * Prayer on Wheels Yagoona
 * Lutheran Church of Australia
 * Christian Mission Fellowship

Population
Yagoona is a well established residential area with a population of approximately 15,000 according to the 2001 National Census, including an indigenous Australian population of 118. Of those born overseas in Yagoona, the largest group is from Vietnam, followed by Lebanon, Macedonia, China, UK, New Zealand, Italy, Greece, Philippines and Germany. As of 1996 to 2001, Yagoona has undergone a solid population increase despite numbers of Australian-born and the Indigenous decreasing.

Traditionally Yagoona has had a reputation of a retirement suburb, however this is slowly changing with younger residents calling the suburb home.

Language and Religion
Other than English, the most common languages spoken in homes include Greek, Arabic, Vietnamese, Chinese and Macedonian.

Most residents in Yagoona are Catholic (4,875 people, 32.5%), followed by Anglican (1,926 people, 12.8%), Islamic (1,789 people, 11.9%), Orthodox (1,617 people, 10.8%), Buddhist (1,202 people, 8.0%). Uniting Church, Presbyterian, Baptist, Lutheran, Pentecostal and other religions were reported with smaller numbers.

Yagoona Autumn Fair
Each year an Autumn Fair is hosted in Yagoona's Gazzard Park, designed to allow the community to express their aims and objectives, as well as to raise funds for community projects and work. Events include a ticket raffle, Yagoona Scouts $1 sausage sizzle, free rides, a non-stop stage show, face painting and more. On at least one occasion, the fair was held in the Spring rather than Autumn.

2007 Autumn Fair Pictures

Popular culture
Footy Legends, written by Khoa and Anh Do, directed by the former and starring the latter, is a drama movie set in Yagoona. It makes references to the social issues in the area and revolves around an amateur rugby league team consisting of socially disaffected people.

Sport
The local sports team is the Yagoona Lions football team, a member of the Bankstown District Amateur Football Association. The Lions' home-ground is at O'Neill Park.

A (now defunct) Indoor Cricket Sports Club is situated on the Hume Highway.

Notable people

 * Anh Do, Vietnamese Australian actor and stand-up comedian
 * Khoa Do, actor, writer and director (brother of Anh Do)