Cairns Region | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Location withinQueensland, 2013, prior to de-amalgamation ofShire of Douglas | |||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||
| Country | Australia | ||||||||||||
| State | Queensland | ||||||||||||
| Region | Far North Queensland | ||||||||||||
| Established | 2008 | ||||||||||||
| Council seat | Cairns City | ||||||||||||
| Government | |||||||||||||
| • Mayor | Amy Eden | ||||||||||||
| • State electorate | |||||||||||||
| • Federal divisions | |||||||||||||
| Area | |||||||||||||
• Total | 1,689 km2 (652 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||
| • Total | 166,943 (2021 census)[1] (38th) | ||||||||||||
| • Density | 98.841/km2 (256.00/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Website | Cairns Region | ||||||||||||
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TheCairns Region is alocal government area inFar North Queensland,Queensland, Australia, centred on the regional city ofCairns. It was established in 2008 by the amalgamation of theCity of Cairns and the Shire ofDouglas. However, following public protest and a referendum in 2013, on 1 January 2014, the Shire of Douglas was de-amalgamated from the Cairns Region and re-established as a separate local government authority.
The Cairns Regional Council's 2023–24 operating budget is A$433.5 million.[3]
In the2021 census, the Cairns Region had a population of 166,943 people.[1]
Yidinji (also known asYidinj,Yidiny, andIdindji) is anAustralian Aboriginal language and a traditional Indigenous country.[citation needed] Its traditional language region is within the local government areas of Cairns Region andTablelands Region, in such localities asCairns City (CBD),Gordonvale, and theMulgrave River, and the southern part of theAtherton Tableland includingAtherton andKairi.[4]
Tjapukai (also known asDjabuganydji,Djabugay, andDjabuganydji) is the traditionalAboriginal country and language north of theBarron River in the Cairns Region, with the traditional group extending west towardsMareeba and north towardsDouglas Shire andPort Douglas.[5][citation needed]
The origins of local government in Far North Queensland lie in theLocal Government Act 1878,[6] under which 74 Divisions (local government areas) were created, including the Cairns Division.
TheDouglas Division was created on 3 June 1880 by excising part of Cairns Division.
Under theLocal Authorities Act 1902 Cairns Division was redesignated as theShire of Cairns and Douglas Division was redesignated as theShire of Douglas on 31 March 1903.
The Borough of Cairns was proclaimed on 28 May 1885 under theLocal Government Act 1878,[6] and was created by excising part of the Cairns Division. With the passage of theLocal Authorities Act 1902, it became a Town on 31 March 1903, and was proclaimed a City on 12 October 1923.[7] For most of its existence Cairns City covered only the central business district and inner suburbs.
On 20 December 1919,Barron Shire was abolished, and part of its area was transferred to Cairns Shire. On 16 November 1940, Cairns Shire was renamed Mulgrave Shire.
On 21 November 1991, theElectoral and Administrative Review Commission, created two years earlier, produced its second report, and recommended that local government boundaries in the Cairns area be rationalised, and that the Shire be dissolved and amalgamated with theCity of Cairns. TheLocal Government (Cairns, Douglas, Mareeba and Mulgrave) Regulation 1994 was gazetted on 16 December 1994. On 22 March 1995, Mulgrave Shire was abolished and became part of theCity of Cairns.
In July 2007, the Local Government Reform Commission released its report and recommended that Cairns amalgamate with the Shire of Douglas, and that the new Cairns Regional Council be undivided with 10 councilors and a mayor.[8] On 15 March 2008, Cairns City and Douglas Shire ceased to exist, and elections were held on the same day to elect councilors and a mayor to the replacement Regional Council.
In 2012, a proposal was made to de-amalgamate the Shire of Douglas from the Cairns Region.[9] On 9 March 2013, the citizens of the former Douglas shire voted in a referendum to de-amalgamate.[10] The shire was re-established on 1 January 2014.[11][12]
The Cairns Region includes the following settlements:
Cairns Central area: | Northern Mulgrave area: | Southern Mulgrave area: |
|
1 – shared withCassowary Coast Region
2 – shared withCassowary Coast Region andTablelands Region
The Cairns Regional Council operate public libraries atBabinda,Cairns City,Earlville,Edmonton,Gordonvale,Manunda,Smithfield andStratford.[13]
The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008.
The only census in which the Cairns Region included the Douglas Shire was conducted in 2011.
| Year | Total Region | Cairns (C) | Mulgrave (S) | Douglas (S) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | 25,197 | 11,993 | 10,303 | 2,901 |
| 1947 | 29,622 | 16,644 | 10,485 | 2,493 |
| 1954 | 37,597 | 21,020 | 13,477 | 3,100 |
| 1961 | 42,985 | 25,204 | 14,427 | 3,354 |
| 1966 | 45,927 | 26,696 | 15,312 | 3,919 |
| 1971 | 51,345 | 30,288 | 16,985 | 4,072 |
| 1976 | 62,628 | 34,857 | 23,025 | 4,746 |
| 1981 | 76,388 | 39,096 | 31,335 | 5,957 |
| 1986 | 91,688 | 42,227 | 41,711 | 7,750 |
| 1991 | 116,584 | 49,361 | 54,783 | 12,440 |
| 1996 | 129,698 | 116,718 | 12,980 | |
| 2001 | 133,903 | 119,937 | 13,966 | |
| 2006 | 150,484 | 136,460 | 14,024 | |
| 2011 | 167,355 | 156,169 | 11,186 | |
| 2016 | 156,901 | |||
| 2021 | 166,943 | |||
In the2016 census, the Cairns Region had a population of 156,901 people.[14]
In the2021 census, the Cairns Region had a population of 166,943 people.[1]
Cairns Regional Council | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| Leadership | |
Amy Eden, Team Eden | |
Deputy Mayor | Brett Olds, Independent |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 10 elected representatives, including a Mayor and 9 councillors |
Political groups |
|
| Elections | |
Last election | 16 March 2024 |
Next election | 25 March 2028 |
On 1 January 2014, Julia Leu ceased to be a Councillor upon the de-amalgamation of the Shire of Douglas.
On 31 January 2015,Rob Pyne was elected to theLegislative Assembly of Queensland and resigned as a Councillor. Cathy Zeiger was appointed on 12 March 2015 to replace Rob Pyne by a panel comprising Mayor Bob Manning and former Councillors Fran Lindsay and Jeff Pezzutti.[15]
Bob Manning announced his retirement as mayor on 17 November 2023.[16] Councillor Terry James was elected as mayor on 22 November 2023.[17]
The current council, elected in 2024, is:
| Ward | Councillor | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mayor | Amy Eden | Team Eden | |
| Division 1 | Brett Moller | Cairns Unity | |
| Division 2 | Matthew Tickner | Independent LNP | |
| Division 3 | Cathy Zeiger | Independent | |
| Division 4 | Trevor Tim | Team Eden | |
| Division 5 | Rob Pyne | Independent Socialist | |
| Division 6 | Kristy Vallely | Cairns Unity | |
| Division 7 | Anna Middleton | Independent | |
| Division 8 | Rhonda Coghlan | Cairns Unity | |
| Division 9 | Brett Olds | Independent One Nation | |
| Year | Division 1 | Division 2 | Division 3 | Division 4 | Division 5 | Division 6 | Division 7 | Division 8 | Division 9 | Division 10 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | Councillor | |||||||||||
| 2008 | Paul Gregory (Ind.) | Nancy Lanskey (Ind.) | Rob Pyne (Ind. Labor) | Kristen Lesina (Ind.) | Alan Blake (Ind.) | Linda Cooper (Ind.) | Diane Forsyth (Ind.) | Margaret Cochrane (Ind.) | Sno Bonneau (Ind.) | Julia Leu (Ind.) | ||||||||||
| 2012 | Steve Brain (Ind.) | John Schilling (Unity) | Terry James (Unity) | Richie Bates (Unity/Ind.) | Max O'Halloran (Unity) | Jessie Richardson (Unity) | Greg Fennell (Unity) | |||||||||||||
| 2014 | 9 wards (2014−present) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | Cathy Zeiger (Ind.) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Brett Moller (Unity) | Brett Olds (Ind. LNP/Ind.) | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | Rob Pyne (Ind. Socialist/Ind. Socialist Alliance) | Amy Eden (Unity/Team Eden) | Kristy Vallely (Unity) | Rhonda Coghlan (Unity) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2020 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024a | Jeremy Neal (Unity) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 | Matthew Tickner (Ind. LNP) | Trevor Tim (Team Eden) | Rob Pyne (Ind. Socialist Alliance) | Anna Middleton (Ind.) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2024b | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Party | Votes | % | Swing | Seats | Change | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cairns Unity | 3 |  2 | |||||
| Independent | 3 |  1 | |||||
| Team Eden | 1 |  | |||||
| Independent LNP | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Independent Socialist Alliance | 1 | | |||||
| Community First | 0 | | |||||
| Independent Labor | 0 | | |||||
| Independent Democratic | 0 | | |||||
This Wikipedia article incorporatesCC BY 4.0licensed text from:"Yidinji".Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages map.State Library of Queensland. Retrieved30 January 2020.16°55′24″S145°46′26″E / 16.92333°S 145.77389°E /-16.92333; 145.77389
