Federation Council, New South Wales

The Federation Council is a local government area located in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. This area was formed in 2016 from the merger of the Corowa Shire with its neighbouring Urana Shire.[3]

Federation Council
New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates35°34′S 146°18′E
Population
 • Density2.15954/km2 (5.5932/sq mi)
Established12 May 2016 (2016-05-12)[3]
Area5,685 km2 (2,195.0 sq mi)[3]
MayorPatrick Bourke
Council seatCorowa
RegionRiverina
State electorate(s)Albury
Federal Division(s)Farrer
WebsiteFederation Council
LGAs around Federation Council:
Murrumbidgee Narrandera Murrumbidgee
Murrumbidgee, Berrigan Federation Council Lockhart, Greater Hume
Moira (Vic) Indigo (Vic) Indigo (Vic)

The council comprises an area of 5,685 square kilometres (2,195 sq mi) and covers the urban areas of Corowa and Mulwala and the surrounding cropping and pastoral region to the north. It is bounded to the south by the Murray River and the state of Victoria. At the time of its establishment the council had an estimated population of 12,602.[3]

The inaugural mayor of Federation Council is Patrick Bourke from Urana, elected by his fellow councillors on 26 September 2017.[4]

Main towns and villages

In addition to the main urban centres of Corowa, Urana and Mulwala, localities in the area include Balldale, Boree Creek, Buraja, Coreen, Daysdale, Hopefield, Howlong, Lowesdale, Morundah, Oaklands, Rand, Rennie and Savernake.

Heritage listings

The Federation Council has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

Council

Federation Council comprise nine Councillors elected proportionally as a single ward. All Councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office.[3]

The interim Administrator of the Federation Council was solicitor and former professional rugby league footballer Mike Eden, until elections were held on 9 September 2017

The most recent election was held on 9 September 2017, and the makeup of the council is as follows:[10]

PartyCouncillors
  Australian Labor Party 0
  Greens NSW 0
  Liberal Party of Australia 0
  Independents and unaligned 9
Total 9
CouncillorPartyNotes
  Shaun Whitechurch Unaligned Deputy Mayor
  Patrick Bourke Independent Mayor, Former councillor and Mayor of Urana Shire
  David Longley Independent
  Paul Miegel Independent Former councillor and Mayor of Corowa Shire
  Fred Longmire Unaligned Former councillor and Mayor of Corowa Shire
  Bronwyn Thomas Unaligned
  Gail Law Unaligned Former councillor of Corowa Shire
  Norm Wales Independent
  Andrew Kennedy Unaligned

History

The Federation Council was created by the Government of New South Wales as a result of an amalgamation of some local government bodies through a reform program between 2013 and 2016.[11][12] As part of the review, all New South Wales local government authorities were assessed by the NSW Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal on their historical and projected demographic data, financial sustainability, and other measures including their impact on the State's resources. Those council deemed "unfit" were asked to nominate their preferred merger partner in order to achieve economies of scale.[12][13] Corowa and Urana shires both nominated to merge with each other. In addition Lockhart Shire nominated Urana Shire as a preferred merger partner.[13] In December 2015, the Minister for Local Government Paul Toole proposed the amalgamation of all three Councils.[14] All three Councils opposed the proposal and a group of residents in the town of Mulwala in Corowa Shire threatened to secede and join Berrigan Shire if the three-way merger went ahead.[15][16] Corowa Shire put forward the alternate proposal being a merger of Corowa and Urana shires, despite objections from Urana Shire.[17] The Minister accepted the Corowa and Urana merger proposal and the Federation Council was proclaimed on 12 May 2016.[3]

See also

References
  1. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Federation (A)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
  2. "3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017-18". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019. Estimated resident population (ERP) at 30 June 2018.
  3. "Federation Council". Stronger Councils. Government of New South Wales. 12 May 2016. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
  4. Johnston, David (26 September 2017). "Pat Bourke voted mayor of Federation Council with Shaun Whitechurch elected deputy". Border Mail. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  5. "Corowa Courthouse". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Office of Environment and Heritage. H01450. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  6. "Corowa Railway Station and yard group". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Office of Environment and Heritage. H01120. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  7. "Corowa Flour Mill and site". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Office of Environment and Heritage. H00566. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  8. "Savernake Station and Moveable Heritage". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Office of Environment and Heritage. H01907. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  9. "Urana Soldiers' Memorial Hall". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Office of Environment and Heritage. H01966. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  10. "Federation Council - Candidates in Sequence of Election". Local Government Elections 2017. NSW Electoral Commission. 14 September 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
  11. Sansom, Graham; Munro, Jude; Inglis, Glenn (25 October 2013). "Revitalising Local Government: Final Report" (PDF). Independent Local Government Review Panel. Government of New South Wales. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 February 2015. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  12. Johnston, David (20 October 2015). "Corowa and Urana shires both ruled not fit for future by IPART". Border Mail. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  13. Willett, Rachael (23 March 2016). "Urana digs in and says 'no' to voluntary merger". mmg.com.au. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  14. Johnston, David (18 December 2015). "Lockhart joins Corowa and Urana in merger". Border Mail. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  15. Muir, Robert (19 January 2016). "Yes Minister…..but No, Minister". Corowa Free Press. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  16. Willett, Rachael (19 January 2016). "Mulwala on the move?". Yarrawonga Chronicle. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
  17. Johnston, David (11 March 2016). "Urana Shire prefers to be standalone rather than taken over by Corowa Shire". Border Mail. Retrieved 22 May 2016.
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