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27-688: The Rockhampton Region is a local government area (LGA) in Central Queensland , Australia, located on the Tropic of Capricorn about 600 kilometres (370 mi) north of Brisbane . Rockhampton is the region's major city; the region also includes the Fitzroy River , Mount Archer National Park and Berserker Range . In the 2021 census , the Rockhampton Region had a population of 81,968 people. Established in 2008, it

54-558: A Main Roads office for about four decades, and eventually was restored and, since 1985, has been the home of Rockhampton and District Historical Society. Wards were abolished at some point and were not reintroduced until 1982, when the council was restructured with 10 divisions each electing one councillor, plus a mayor elected by the entire City. On 1 July 1984, the City grew northwards by annexing Parkhurst , where its water treatment facility

81-638: A proposal was made to de-amalgamate the Shire of Livingstone from the Rockhampton Region. On 9 March 2013, the citizens of the former Livingstone shire voted in a referendum to de-amalgamate. The Shire of Livingstone was re-established on 1 January 2014. The Council consists of a Mayor and seven Councillors. The Mayor is elected by the public, and the Councillors are elected from seven single-member divisions using an optional preferential voting system. Elections are held every four years. Margaret Strelow resigned

108-514: A somewhat unhappy 36-year existence—its small population and location opposite the stronger and wealthier Rockhampton borough made comparisons inevitable and development of its own identity almost impossible. In 1919, it was described as a "small and straggling hamlet". Nevertheless, it was able to get a loan to construct a Municipal Chambers in 1885, which was completed in December of that year. The town clerk's arrest for embezzlement in 1890 marked

135-604: A third of votes cast in the election. Following uproar over Hooper's "accidental" elevation to the Mayoralty, Local Government Minister Stirling Hinchliffe announced the following day that the Queensland Government would amend the Act to roll back the changes and force a by-election for the role of Mayor as soon as the newly-elected Queensland Parliament had been sworn in. Following Strelow's resignation as Mayor, it

162-518: Is largely for this reason that the term "local government area", or simply "LGA", is favoured over the term "municipality", the use of which could easily lead to confusion. In recent years changes to the structures of local government have given rise to new official designations, while other terms have fallen out of favour. In the mid-1990s the state government of Victoria amalgamated almost all municipalities, abolishing many cities and shires, all towns and all but one borough. Queenscliff, south of Melbourne,

189-532: Is now the only place in Australia that is officially a borough. Meanwhile, many "rural cities" were formed in largely rural areas where the core town is large enough, in terms of population, to be considered a city. In many such cases that town had previously been governed by a now defunct city council. Restructuring of local government in New South Wales and Queensland in the following decade gave rise to

216-639: Is used as a generalised description in the United Kingdom to refer to a variety of political divisions such as boroughs , counties , unitary authorities , and cities , all of which have a council or similar body exercising a degree of self-government. Each of the United Kingdom's four constituent countries has its own structure of local government, for example Northern Ireland has local districts; many parts of England have non-metropolitan counties consisting of rural districts; London and many other urban areas have boroughs; there are three islands councils off

243-616: The Municipalities Act 1858 , a piece of New South Wales legislation inherited by Queensland when it became a separate colony in 1859. It held its first election on 26 February 1861 and its inaugural meeting on 1 March 1861. The municipality had an area of 13 km (5.0 sq mi) located on the south bank of the Fitzroy River and had a population of about 600. In 1864, the council was divided into three wards—Fitzroy, Archer and Leichhardt. A proposal to greatly expand its area southwards to include Gracemere and Bouldercombe

270-604: The City of Rockhampton and Town of North Rockhampton councils proposed separate water infrastructure projects. On Saturday 25 January 1919, an amalgamation referendum held in North Rockhampton passed with 884 of the 1,029 votes cast in favour. On 15 March 1919, elections for the new four-ward council with 11 councillors took place, with their first meeting being held five days later. North Rockhampton's chambers, located in Stapleton Park, North Rockhampton , became

297-436: The beginning of a period of difficulties characterised by disputes with the surrounding Gogango Divisional Board over road construction, and internal conflict between members of council, in which the Queensland Government was often requested to intervene. It did not have a reliable water supply and at the time of its amalgamation was still trying to raise funds for a dam. The Fitzroy Division was proclaimed on 6 April 1899 out of

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324-491: The coast of Scotland; while the rest of Scotland and all of Wales are divided into unitary authority counties, some of which are officially designated as cities. As such the term local government area is a convenient generic label referring to all of these authorities and the areas within their control. The term is particularly common in Australia where it is synonymous with "municipality". Local government authorities across

351-800: The country have similar functions and powers, but have different official designations in different states, and according to whether they are urban or rural. Most urban municipalities in all states are "cities". Many in Western Australia are officially "towns", even within the Perth metropolitan area. Many rural areas in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia are "shires", while rural areas in South Australia have "district councils", and those in Tasmania officially use

378-1007: The following settlements: Rockhampton area Mount Morgan area Fitzroy area - shared with the Shire of Livingstone The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008. The census in 2011 was the first for the new Region, while the census in 2016 reflects the deamalgamation of the Shire of Livingstone. Rockhampton Regional Council operates a headquarters public library at 230 Bolsover Street, Rockhampton ("Southside"). Branch libraries are located in Berserker ("Rockhampton North"), Gracemere , Mount Morgan and West Rockhampton ("Anytime" at Rockhampton Airport ). The council owns six business units which are city-owned enterprises managed on commercial lines: 23°22′29.97″S 150°30′42.02″E  /  23.3749917°S 150.5116722°E  / -23.3749917; 150.5116722 Local government area The phrase

405-475: The four areas of Rockhampton, Fitzroy, Livingstone and Mount Morgan amalgamate, due to a community of interest centred upon Rockhampton. The very weak sustainability rating given to the Shire of Mount Morgan was of particular concern. On 15 March 2008, the City and Shires formally ceased to exist, and elections were held on the same day to elect councillors and a mayor to the Regional Council. In 2012,

432-529: The mayoralty on Monday 9 November 2020, following an adverse finding at the Councillor Conduct Tribunal. The misconduct finding related to non-disclosure, or incorrect disclosure, of corporate hospitality received by mining company Adani during a trip to India as part of a delegation of Mayors from Regional Queensland . Strelow publicly stated that she refuted the findings, and that her refusal to agree to having been personally compromised

459-619: The modern Rockhampton Region covers. Capital and people came to the area in greater numbers after the discovery of gold in 1882 at Mount Morgan , about 20 kilometres (12 mi) south of Rockhampton. A Municipal Borough was proclaimed there on 22 May 1890. A bridge was built spanning the Fitzroy River in 1882, and a year later in September 1883, the North Rockhampton Borough was proclaimed. North Rockhampton had

486-576: The municipal designations of "region" and "area", for example, the Sunshine Coast of Queensland was formerly divided into several shires, but is now governed by a single Sunshine Coast Regional Council . "Local government area" is also an official designation in The Gambia and Nigeria . List of countries where "local government area" is an official designation: Department of Main Roads (Queensland) The Department of Main Roads

513-501: The southern part of Gogango. With the passage of the Local Authorities Act 1902 , Rockhampton became one of three former municipalities, alongside Brisbane and Townsville , to become a City on 31 March 1903, while North Rockhampton and Mount Morgan became Towns and the divisions of Gogango and Fitzroy became Shires. Gogango was renamed Livingstone on 8 August 1903. The State Government became concerned in 1918 after both

540-599: The title "municipality". Due to the Australian Capital Territory's small size it has no local government and is instead overseen by the ACT Legislative Assembly . Areas Towns Municipalities Shires Shires Towns Regional councils Rural cities Municipalities/municipal councils District councils Regional councils Towns Aboriginal councils Municipalities Rural cities Boroughs Shires Towns Shires It

567-573: Was a department of the Government of Queensland responsible for planning, building and maintaining the state's major roads. It was merged with Queensland Transport to form the Department of Transport and Main Roads in April 2009. The Minister for Local Government and Main Roads was responsible for the department; Warren Pitt was the last person in this portfolio. The department's head office

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594-631: Was a matter of personal integrity, but that she had resigned her position in light of the findings. Following an amendment made to the Local Government Act 2009 (Qld) only a few months prior, Strelow's resignation less than 12 months after being elected meant that the position of Mayor would immediately pass to the runner-up from the Mayoral election of March 2020. The only other candidate in that election had been local environmental activist, Chris "Pineapple" Hooper, who had received less than

621-489: Was announced that Deputy Mayor Neil Fisher would fill the role of Acting Mayor until a replacement had been elected. On 4 February 2021, Tony Williams was elected as mayor. In 2024, Strelow was exonerated as a review by QCAT found that the official hospitality was not required to have been listed on the particular register in question. It also commented that it was "clearly highly regrettable that this matter has taken so long to be dealt with". The Rockhampton Region includes

648-608: Was at 477 Boundary Street in Spring Hill , Brisbane The department was one of a handful of government agencies in Queensland with a permanent public museum . Situated in Toowoomba , the Heritage Centre showcases the story and culture of the department with a rich history; how hard work and a pioneering spirit have helped connect Queensland. The museum opened to the public in 2008. The Department of Main Roads had

675-613: Was being constructed, from the Shire of Livingstone. The council tried on several occasions to expand further into the Livingstone and Fitzroy areas, but a referendum in Fitzroy on 9 February 1991 was opposed by 83% of valid votes cast. In July 2007, the Local Government Reform Commission released a report making recommendations for statewide reform of local government boundaries, and recommended that

702-487: Was preceded by four previous local government areas extending to almost the beginning of local government in Queensland. On 1 January 2014, one of those local government areas, the Shire of Livingstone was restored as an independent council. Prior to the 2008 amalgamation, the Rockhampton Region existed as four distinct local government areas: Rockhampton was proclaimed as Queensland's fourth municipality (after Brisbane , Ipswich and Toowoomba ) on 13 December 1860 under

729-664: Was rejected in part due to opposition from influential squatters in the area. It achieved a measure of autonomy in 1878 with the enactment of the Local Government Act . On 11 November 1879, the Gogango Divisional Board was established as one of 74 divisions around Queensland under the Divisional Boards Act 1879 . It covered an area of 16,239 km (6,270 sq mi) surrounding the municipality—an area significantly greater than

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