Maroochy Shire Council

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Maroochy Shire Council
Queensland

Population:

145,139 (June 2005)^[1]

Area:

1158^[2] km²

Mayor:

Joe Natoli

Region:

Sunshine Coast

State District:

Maroochydore, Nicklin

Federal Division:

Fairfax, Fisher

Website: http://www.maroochy.qld.gov.au/

LGAs around Maroochy Shire Council
Cooloola	Noosa	Pacific Ocean
Cooloola	Maroochy Shire Council	Pacific Ocean
Kilcoy	Caloundra	Pacific Ocean

Maroochy Shire Council is a Local Government Area on the Sunshine Coast in South East Queensland, Australia. Maroochy Shire is approximately 100 km north of the state capital Brisbane. With a population base of over 136,000, the Maroochy Shire covers an area of 1,158 square kilometres.

1 Etymology
2 Legend of Maroochy
3 Economy
4 Tourism
5 Towns
6 References

[edit] Etymology

Maroochy or Marutchi in Aboriginal means 'red-bill' - the Aboriginal term for our famous black swan.

[edit] Legend of Maroochy

The name "Maroochy" comes from a local Aboriginal legend. It tells how Ninderry, a rival from another clan, stole a beautiful young woman called Maroochy from Coolum, the man whom she was to marry.

When Coolum rescued his bride by stealth, Ninderry chased them. He caught up with them, and, throwing a boomerang, succeeded in knocking off Coolum's head, which rolled into the sea and is represented today by Mudjimba Island. His body is represented by Mount Coolum. For his treacherous attack, Ninderry was turned into stone by the wrathful gods.

Maroochy fled inland, where she wept so copiously that her tears flowed down the mountain to form the Maroochy River. ^[3]

[edit] Economy

Maroochy Shire is the largest contributor to the Sunshine Coast economy and home to the key regional centre, Maroochydore. It is one of the fastest growing shires in Australia and is home to Australia's newest university, the University of the Sunshine Coast, and to Australia's award winning regional airport, the Sunshine Coast Airport.

[edit] Tourism

With its lush green hinterland, and over 20 kilometres of beautiful beaches, Maroochy Shire is home to hundreds of different native flora and fauna species. From its thousands of hectares of bushland, to the large cosmopolitan shopping and dining precincts, Maroochy Shire is as diverse as its population.

As one of Australia’s premier tourist destinations, Maroochy offers a host of first-class recreation activities, restaurants, shopping centres, and numerous tourist attractions.