Population 146,314 (2012) Website City of Canterbury Area 34 km² | Mayor Brian Robson (Labor) City of Canterbury Marrickville Council seat Campsie | |
Established 17 March 1879 (Municipality)
16 November 1993 (City) Abolished 12 May 2016 (2016-05-12) Points of interest Beaman Park, Girrahween Park, Ewen Park, Lees Park, Gough Whitlam Park | ||
The City of Canterbury was a local government area in the south–west region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Contents
- Map of Canterbury NSW Australia
- Suburbs in the local government area
- Final composition and election method
- History
- Amalgamation
- Demographics
- Logo
- Sister cities
- References
Map of Canterbury, NSW, Australia
The City of Canterbury was primarily residential and light industrial in character. The city was home to over 130 nationalities, with a majority of its residents being born overseas, with the council calling itself "the City of Cultural Diversity." First incorporated as the Municipality of Canterbury in 1879, the council became known as the City of Canterbury in 1993.
The last Mayor of the City of Canterbury Council was Cr. Brian Robson, a member of the Labor Party, until 12 May 2016 when the City was amalgamated with the City of Bankstown, forming Canterbury-Bankstown Council.
Suburbs in the local government area
Suburbs in the former City of Canterbury were:
Final composition and election method
Canterbury City Council was composed of ten Councillors, including the Mayor, elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The Mayor was directly elected since 1976 while the nine other Councillors were elected proportionally as three separate wards, each electing three Councillors. The final election was held on 8 September 2012, and the makeup of the Council, prior to its abolition, was as follows:
The last Council, elected in 2012 until its abolition in 2016, in order of election by ward, was:
History
Indigenous Australians lived in this area for thousand of years. In 1770, the land along the Cooks River was explored by officers from HM Bark Endeavour. In 1793, the area's first land grant was made to the chaplain of the First Fleet, the Reverend Richard Johnson, and given the name Canterbury Vale.
Residential development began picking up in the area during the 1880s and the was extended to Canterbury in 1895, encouraging further suburban development which led to the area becoming heavily populated. A leading developer at this time was Frederick Gibbes, a Member of Parliament for the seat of Newtown.
After much petitioning of the State Government by local residents, the Municipality of Canterbury was proclaimed on 17 March 1879. The council first met in the home of the first mayor, Alderman John Sproule and premised were then leased in the St Paul's Church schoolroom at 47-49 Canterbury Road, Canterbury. The Canterbury Town Hall, located on Canterbury Road between Canton and Howard Streets, was opened in 1889 by the Premier of New South Wales, Sir Henry Parkes. However, over time, Campsie became a more important centre and in recognition of this the city administration moved there in 1963, with the Canterbury Municipal Administration Building, designed by architects Whitehead and Payne, being opened on Beamish Street by the mayor, James S. Scott, on 21 September 1963. The City of Canterbury was proclaimed on 16 November 1993 by the Governor of New South Wales, Rear Admiral Peter Sinclair.
Amalgamation
A 2015 review of local government boundaries by the NSW Government Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal recommended that the City of Canterbury merge with the City of Bankstown to form a new council with an area of 110 square kilometres (42 sq mi) and support a population of approximately 351,000. Following an independent review, on 12 May 2016 the Minister for Local Government announced that the merger with the City of Bankstown would proceed with immediate effect, creating a new council with an area of 72 square kilometres (28 sq mi).
Demographics
At the 2011 Census, there were 137,454 people in the Canterbury local government area, with an equal proportion of male and female residents. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 0.6% of the population. The median age of people in the City of Canterbury was 35 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 20.0% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 13.5% of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 52.9% were married and 10.8% were either divorced or separated.
Population growth in the City of Canterbury between the 2001 Census and the 2006 Census was 0.02%; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 Census, population growth was 5.76%. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78% and 8.32% respectively, population growth in Canterbury local government area was approximately half the national average. The median weekly income for residents within the City of Canterbury is significantly lower than the national average.
Logo
In 1990, the council's Engineering Department produced the logo in everyday usage until 2016, it consisted of two C's in black and white, intersected by a wave in light blue, which represents the Cooks River and is taken from the council arms issued in 1979.