City of Shellharbour | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Location in theIllawarra | |||||||||||||
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| Coordinates:34°35′S150°52′E / 34.583°S 150.867°E /-34.583; 150.867 | |||||||||||||
| Country | Australia | ||||||||||||
| State | New South Wales | ||||||||||||
| Region | Illawarra | ||||||||||||
| Established | 1859 | ||||||||||||
| Council seat | Shellharbour City Centre[3] | ||||||||||||
| Government | |||||||||||||
| • Mayor | Chris Homer | ||||||||||||
| • State electorates | |||||||||||||
| • Federal divisions | |||||||||||||
| Area | |||||||||||||
• Total | 147 km2 (57 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||
| • Totals | 76,271 (2021 census)[1] 72,240 (2018 est.)[2] | ||||||||||||
| • Density | 518.9/km2 (1,344/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Website | City of Shellharbour | ||||||||||||
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TheCity of Shellharbour is alocal government area in theIllawarra region ofNew South Wales,Australia. The city is located about 100 kilometres (62 mi) south ofSydney and covers the southern suburbs of theWollongong urban area centred onShellharbour. At the2021 census, it had an estimated population of 76,271.
The area is bordered by theCity of Wollongong to the north, with the boundary being theLake Illawarra entrance (and the suburb ofLake Illawarra) andMacquarie Rivulet (Albion Park Rail). TheMunicipality of Kiama is to the south of the City of Shellharbour.
Themayor of the Shellharbour City Council isCr. Chris Homer.[4]
Indigenous occupation of the area, particularly of Bass Point, can be traced back to 17,000 BCE.[citation needed]
The area was discovered byEuropeansBass andFlinders in 1796.[5] Free settlers began arriving between 1817 and 1831 and the township was founded in 1851. The Shellharbour (Municipal) Council was constituted on 4 June 1859 following a proclamation in the New South Wales Government Gazette by the GovernorSir William Thomas Denison establishing the Municipality of Shellharbour under theMunicipalities Act 1858.[6] The municipality was proclaimed as the City of Shellharbour from 1 January 1996 by GovernorPeter Sinclair and notified in the New South Wales Government Gazette on 22 December 1995.[7] In May 2009, Shellharbour City Council celebrated itssesquicentenary.[8]
A2015 review of local government boundaries recommended that the City of Shellharbour merge with theCity of Wollongong to form a new council with an area of 831 square kilometres (321 sq mi) and support a population of approximately 276,000.[9] On 13 February 2017, the New South Wales Government decided not to forcibly amalgamate Shellharbour Council with Wollongong Council.
The City of Shellharbour has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:
The City of Shellharbour contains the following suburbs and localities:
As of 2023, Shellharbour City Council is composed of eightcouncillors electedproportionally in four wards. Under theLocal Government (Shellharbour and Wollongong Elections) Act, 2011 (NSW), councillors are elected to hold office untilSeptember 2024. Since2021, the mayor has been directly elected.
The current council, elected in2021, is:
| Ward | Councillor | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mayor | Chris Homer | Independent | |
| A Ward | Kellie Marsh | Kellie Marsh Independents | |
| Maree Edwards | Labor | ||
| B Ward | Moira Hamilton | Labor | |
| John Davey | Local Voice | ||
| C Ward | Colin Gow | Independent | |
| Lou Stefanovski | Labor | ||
| D Ward | Jacqueline Graf | Independent | |
| Rob Petreski | Labor | ||
| Party | Votes | % | Swing | Seats | Change | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | 18,870 | 40.2 | −21.6 | 3 |  1 | ||
| Kellie Marsh Independents | 8,705 | 18.6 | −6.9 | 2 |  1 | ||
| Chris Homer Independents | 6,958 | 14.8 | 1 |  | |||
| Kane Murphy Independents | 4,784 | 10.2 | 1 | 1 | |||
| Independents | 7,586 | 16.2 | −0.1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Formal votes | 46,903 | 92.3 | |||||
| Informal votes | 3,940 | 7.7 | |||||
| Total | 50,843 | 8 | |||||
| Registered voters / turnout | |||||||
| Party | Votes | % | Swing | Seats | Change | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | 21,199 | 61.8 | +12.5 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Kellie Marsh Independents | 8,746 | 25.5 | 1 | ||||
| Independent | 5,583 | 16.3 | 2 | ||||
| Local Voice | 3,454 | 10.1 | 1 | ||||
| Community Voice | 3,416 | 10.0 | 0 | ||||
| Formal votes | 34,282 | 94.9 | |||||
| Informal votes | 1,845 | 5.1 | |||||
| Total votes | 36,127 | 100.0 | |||||
| Registered voters / turnout | 55,825 | 64.71 | |||||
Shellharbour City has many attractions for family entertainment and recreation.In Albion Park Rail there is a Light Rail Museum and steam trains, Historical Aircraft Restoration Society (HARS) Museum, and Albion Oval; a local sports ground. Shellharbour Village, the beach and playground are also popular attractions. Excellent fishing atLake Illawarra and superb surfing atWarilla beach.A cycleway goes from Oak Flats to Barrack Point. TheMacquarie Valley (Shellharbour) provides scenic views and also includes theMacquarie Pass National Park.
There are various beaches in Shellharbour such as the Blacks Beach, Shellharbour North Beach, Shellharbour South Beach, Warilla Central Beach, Warilla North Beach, and Warilla South Beach which are some of the major crowd pullers.[16]
Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC BY 4.0licence. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC BY 4.0licence. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC BY 4.0licence. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) underCC BY 4.0licence.