| City of Mackay Queensland | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Location withinQueensland | |||||||||||||||
| Population | 84,890 (2006)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| • Density | 29.2977/km2 (75.881/sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Established | 1869 | ||||||||||||||
| Area | 2,897.5 km2 (1,118.7 sq mi) | ||||||||||||||
| Council seat | Mackay | ||||||||||||||
| Region | Central Queensland | ||||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||||
| Website | City of Mackay | ||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
TheCity of Mackay was alocal government area located in theCentral Queensland region ofQueensland, Australia, encompassing the regional city ofMackay and the surrounding region. The City was created as a municipal borough in 1869, and prior to amalgamation with theShire of Pioneer in 1994, the City was limited to the central suburbs on the south shore of thePioneer River. From 1994 until 2008, the City covered an area of 2,897.5 square kilometres (1,118.7 sq mi). In 2008, it amalgamated with the Shires ofMirani andSarina to become theMackay Regional Council.
TheBorough of Mackay was proclaimed on 22 September 1869 under theMunicipal Institutions Act 1864.[2] ThePioneer Division was established on 11 November 1879 as one of 74 founding divisions under theDivisional Boards Act 1879.
Initially the council meetings were held in the Court House in River Street, the Post and Telegraph office in Wood Street, and in a building on Sydney Street owned by Mr R. Fleming. The first town hall was a timber structure constructed in 1872 on land that the council purchased at 63 Sydney Street.[3]
With the passage of theLocal Authorities Act 1902, Pioneer Division became theShire of Pioneer and Mackay becameTown of Mackay on 31 March 1903. Mackay received City status on 17 August 1918.
During the boom in sugar prices, the borough council decided in 1884 that a larger town hall was needed. However, it was not until 1909 that they decided to proceed with a brick building on the site of the existing town hall in Sydney Street. The council held a design competition, which was won by a local architect and engineerArthur Rigby. The first town hall was moved to the rear of the block to be behind the new building. The first official Council meeting was held in the (now heritage-listed)second town hall on 19 October 1912 with the official opening the next day.[3]
After the council moved into their new Civic Administration Centre in 1974, they proposed to demolish the town hall and sell off the land to defray the costs of the new civic centre. However, following public protest, they renovated the building to make it available for community purposes.[3]
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 Mackay area be rationalised. TheLocal Government (Mackay and Pioneer) Regulation 1993 was gazetted on 17 December 1993, and on 30 March 1994, the two amalgamated into a larger City of Mackay, which first met on 8 April 1994.
On 15 March 2008, under theLocal Government (Reform Implementation) Act 2007 passed by theParliament of Queensland on 10 August 2007, the City of Mackay merged with the Shires ofMirani andSarina to form theMackay Regional Council.
Prior to 1994,Mackay consisted of the suburbs ofNorth Mackay,West Mackay,South Mackay andEast Mackay.
All other suburbs of Mackay belonged into the defunctShire of Pioneer.
After the amalgamation, the City of Mackay included the following settlements:
Amalgamation of Mackay City and Pioneer Shire Councils
Amalgamation of Mackay City Sarina Shire and Mirani Shire Councils
The town clerks of the City of Mackay were:
Matsuura, Japan (Nagasaki Prefecture)| Year | Population (Mackay) | Population (Pioneer) | Population (Total) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1933 | 10,665 | 9,926 | 20591 |
| 1947 | 13,486 | 11,606 | 25092 |
| 1954 | 14,762 | 14,316 | 29,078 |
| 1961 | 16,809 | 15,741 | 32,550 |
| 1966 | 18,640 | 19,900 | 38,540 |
| 1971 | 19,148 | 22,561 | 41,709 |
| 1976 | 20,224 | 26,938 | 47,162 |
| 1981 | 20,664 | 33,732 | 54,396 |
| 1986 | 22,199 | 36,084 | 58,283 |
| 1991 | 23,052 | 40,614 | 63,666 |
| 1996 | 71,894 | ||
| 2001 | 75,020 | ||
| 2006 | 20,803 | 85,399 | |
| 2015 | 120,000 |
21°08′28.31″S149°11′08.26″E / 21.1411972°S 149.1856278°E /-21.1411972; 149.1856278