The City of Greater Geelong is a local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia, located in the western part of the state. It covers an area of 1,247 square kilometres (481 sq mi) and, at the 2011 Census, had a population of 210,875.[1] It is primarily urban with the vast majority of its population living in the Greater Geelong urban area, while other significant settlements within the LGA include Anakie, Balliang, Barwon Heads, Batesford, Ceres, Clifton Springs, Drysdale, Lara, Ocean Grove, Portarlington and St Leonards. It was formed in 1993 from the amalgamation of the Rural City of Bellarine, Shire of Corio, City of Geelong, City of Geelong West, City of Newtown, City of South Barwon, and parts of Shire of Barrabool and Shire of Bannockburn.[2]
The City is governed and administered by the Greater Geelong City Council; its seat of local government and administrative centre is located at the council headquarters in Geelong, it also has service centres located in Drysdale, Ocean Grove and several other locations within Geelong. The City is named after the main urban settlement located in the centre-west of the LGA, that is Geelong, which is also the LGA's most populous urban centre with a population of 143,921.[3]
1863 – Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale separates from Bellarine to form the Borough of Queenscliffe
1863 – South Barwon a borough
1864 – Corio and Bannockburn made shires
1865 – Bellarine a shire
1872 – South Barwon a shire
1875 – West Geelong a borough
1910 – Geelong a city
1915 – Meredith added to Bannockburn Shire
1922 – West Geelong a town
1924 – Newtown and Chilwell a town
1929 – West Geelong a city
1959 – Newtown and Chilwell a city
1967 – Newtown discarded Chilwell from its title as a city
1974 – South Barwon a city
1993 – City of Greater Geelong formed
Sourced from Appendix V, A Journey to Destiny 1890–1990 – 100 Years of Cement Manufacturing at Fyansford by Australian Cement Limited .[4]
Council[]
Current composition[]
The council is composed of a directly elected Mayor, twelve wards and twelve councillors, with one councillor per ward elected to represent each ward, except the Mayor who represents the whole of the municipality.[5]
Ward
Councillor
Notes
Mayor
Darryn Lyons
Directly elected 2013
Austin
John Irvine
Elected 2012
Beangala
Jan Farrell
Brownbill
Michelle Heagney
Elected 2012
Buckley
Andy Richards
Elected 2008
Cheetham
Rod Macdonald
Corio
Kylie Fisher
Elected 2008
Coryule
Lindsay Ellis
Elected 2012
Cowie
Eddy Kontelj
Elected 2010
Deakin
Ron Nelson
Elected 2011
Kardinia
Bruce Harwood
Elected 2001
Kildare
Stretch Kontelj
Elected 1998
Windermere
Tony Ansett
Elected 2012
Wards[]
Ward
Named after
Austin Ward
Elizabeth Austin, civic benefactor of homes and hospital
Beangala Ward
the homeland of the Bengali clan of the Wathaurong people
Brownbill Ward
Fanny Brownbill, first female member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly (1938–1946)
Buckley Ward
William Buckley, an escaped convict from Sorrento who lived with the local Aboriginals
Cheetham Ward
Richard Cheetham, (1836–1900) pioneer of salt harvesting industry in Victoria
Corio Ward
an aboriginal name for the area. (Aboriginal word for 'land')
Coryule Ward
the home of Anne Drysdale, a pioneer squatter in this area
Cowie Ward
James Cowie, an early landowner
Deakin Ward
Deakin UniversityAlfred Deakin, second Prime Minister of Australia
Kardinia Ward
Aboriginal name for sunrise and the home of Alexander Thomson, first elected Mayor of Geelong;
Kildare Ward
an earlier name for the area of the ward
Windermere Ward
home of the Fairbairn family, pioneers of the area
The council meets in the council chambers at the council headquarters in the Geelong Town Hall Offices, which is also the location of the council's administrative activities. It also provides customer services at both its administrative centre on Gheringhap St in Geelong, and its service centres in Belmont, Corio, Drysdale, Geelong West, Ocean Grove, Waurn Ponds and on Brougham St in Geelong.
Localities[]
Localities which encompass the City of Greater Geelong include:
^John, McNeil (1990). A Journey to Destiny 1890–1990 – 100 Years of Cement Manufacturing at Fyansford by Australian Cement Limited. Australian Cement Limited.