16-497: The Shire of Harvey is a local government area of Western Australia . Harvey is located in the state's South West region, approximately 140 km south of Perth , and includes some of Bunbury 's northern suburbs. The shire covers an area of 1,728 km² and had a population of approximately 26,500 as at the 2016 Census . Around 12% of the population are of Southern or Eastern European origin. It contains three large towns, Harvey , Australind and Brunswick Junction and
32-929: A breakdown for the Australind suburban area (Part A) and the remainder of the Shire (Part B): As of 2023, 282 places are heritage-listed in the Shire of Harvey, of which nine are on the State Register of Heritage Places , among them the Yarloop Workshops which were destroyed in a 2016 bush fire. 33°04′41″S 115°53′38″E / 33.078°S 115.894°E / -33.078; 115.894 Local Government Areas of Western Australia There are 137 local government areas (LGAs) in Western Australia , which comprise 27 cities, 102 shires, and 8 towns that manage their own affairs to
48-551: A number of smaller towns. The shire office is located on Uduc Road, Harvey, and an administration centre is open at Mulgara Street, Australind. It was established as the Brunswick Road District on 14 December 1894, when it separated from the larger Wellington Road District. The first election was held on 11 February 1895. It was renamed the Harvey Road District on 10 December 1909. It was made
64-471: A shire with effect from 1 July 1961 following the passage of the Local Government Act 1960 , which reformed all remaining road districts into shires. The shire does not have Wards, although is represented by Councillors from all around the Shire. The towns and localities of the Shire of Harvey with population and size figures based on the most recent Australian census : The ABS provides
80-443: A significant reduction in the number of decisions requiring ministerial approval which allowed for streamlined decision-making and greater local government autonomy. Although successive state governments have periodically promoted municipal amalgamation, only a small number of local governments have merged over the course of Western Australia's history. Historically most local governments have strongly resisted forced amalgamations and
96-536: A tax on private allotments to fund the construction and maintenance of "roads, paths and plantations". As the Colony began to develop, the first form of local government was established in some areas under the Towns Improvement Act of 1838. These trusts were empowered to elect ratepayers as Trustees and assess and collect a property tax for the construction of roads. Many of these town trusts, including
112-782: The Indian Ocean Territories Administration of Laws Act , which allows the Western Australian Local Government Act to apply "on-island" as though it were a Commonwealth act. Nonetheless, Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands are not parts of Western Australia. The most recent local government elections were held in 2023 . Land was originally granted in the Swan River Colony under regulations which allowed for land commissioners to assess
128-619: The Greater Perth Movement around this time led to the amalgamation of inner city local governments to create a greatly expanded City of Perth until 1993, when the City was broken up once again. The first local government department was established by the state in 1949 to guide local government authorities. Following the war local governments increasingly expanded their services from property, health and local infrastructure (roads, drainage) to community and social services. This
144-513: The Perth Town Trust , experienced severe administrative and financial difficulties, and in some cases barely functioned at all. The Guildford Town Trust lasted only a couple of years before ceasing to function until it was reconstituted in 1863. The District Roads Act and Municipal Institutions Act , both of 1871 improved matters by allowing for the establishment of Roads Boards and Municipal Corporations. Municipal Corporations had
160-464: The Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands are also included for comparison purposes. Federal external territory. Currently, Western Australia has ten regional councils. Each regional council comprises two or more local government areas (LGAs). Municipality of Guildford The Municipality of Guildford was a local government area of Western Australia . It first came into existence in 1838 as
176-710: The Guildford Town Trust, before ceasing to function several years later. It was reconstituted in 1863, and became a Municipality in 21 February 1871 under the Municipal Institutions Act . It ceased to exist when it was merged with the Swan Road District on 10 June 1960 to form the Swan-Guildford Road District . When first established, the council had a chairman. After June 1887, in celebration of
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#1732797568020192-627: The capacity to levy property taxes, pass municipal by-laws and undertake various local regulatory services previously carried out by colonial officials and other central bodies. Corporations could also establish civic institutions and facilities with the governors' consent, including libraries and botanical gardens. Road Boards where strictly limited to the construction of roads, could not levy property taxes and depended on colonial government grants for any expenditures. Women were permitted to be elected to Road Boards from 1911 and to Municipal Corporations from 1919. The influence of town clerk W.E. Bold and
208-606: The extent permitted by the Local Government Act 1995 . The Local Government Act 1995 also makes provision for regional local governments (referred to as "regional councils", established by two or more local governments for a particular purpose. There are three classifications of local government in Western Australia: The Shire of Christmas Island and the Shire of Cocos (Keeling) Islands are federal external territories and covered by
224-455: The present day. In the 1970s, the scope of local government services expanded to encompass the provision of nursing homes and other forms of aged care. During the late 1980s, and early 1990s a bi-partisan reform process led to the Local Government Act 1995 , which amongst other changes, established for the first time a clear separation of responsibility between elected councillors and local government administration. Other key changes included
240-783: The total number of authorities has declined only marginally over the last century. The most recent state government led effort to encourage the voluntary amalgamation of 30 metropolitan local governments into 16 was abandoned by the Barnett government in 2014. In 2017, the McGowan government initiated a review process to reform the Local Government Act 1995. The 30 metropolitan local government areas (LGAs) comprise 20 cities, 3 shires, and 7 towns. The 107 non-metropolitan local government areas (LGAs) comprise 7 cities, 99 shires, and 1 town . The Shire of Christmas Island and
256-414: Was termed the “New Order” at the time, and encompassed the development of community centres, infant health clinics and sporting facilities. Only a few cities – Fremantle , Nedlands , Perth , South Perth , and Subiaco – existed prior to 1961. On 1 July 1961, all road districts became shires, and all municipalities became towns or cities. This structure has continued till
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