Ballina, New South Wales

Ballina is located on the Pacific Highway, and was established on the northern shore of the Richmond River near Cape Byron, Australia's most easterly point, in the 1840s. Ballina boasts some of the most beautiful surfing beaches and picturesque headlands on the east coast of Australia, such as Angel's Beach. It is approximately 750 km (466 mi) north of Sydney and 205 km (127 mi) south of Brisbane. It is home to the World's Largest Prawn (made of concrete and fibreglass).

The Richmond River and its estuaries abound with marine wildlife and for many years has remained a favorite of fishermen and water sports enthusiasts alike.

[edit] History

The Las Balsa Raft at the Ballina Maratime Museum.

Ballina has a number of famous "landfalls" associated with it. The first, in 1928, was Charles Kingsford Smith. His plane, the "Southern Cross", crossed the coast over Ballina after its epic journey across the Pacific.^{[citation needed]} Ballina had a festival associated with the event during the 1970s and 1980s, and a school in East Ballina bears the name "Southern Cross". The second landfall associated with Ballina was in 1973 when the Las Balsas rafts were towed into Ballina by fishing trawlers after their journey from Ecuador.^[3] They originally had planned to arrive in Mooloolaba in Queensland, but currents had forced them off their destination. Their journey was almost twice as long as the Kon-Tiki expeditions of 1947 and proved that people could have travelled across the Pacific in ancient times.

[edit] Name

The Big Prawn.

Some discussion exists as to how Ballina got its name. Some believe it was named after the Irish town of Ballina, but this is unlikely. The more plausible explanation is that the name is derived from an Indigenous Australian word meaning "place of many oysters". The names "Bullinah" and "Boolinah" have been mooted. But perhaps, also, the Aboriginal name reminded the settlers of Ballina in Ireland so the name's origination could have been a combination of both sources.

Ballina has a sister city agreement with its Irish namesake.

[edit] Development

At its current rate of growth, population of Ballina Shire is expected to reach 46,000 by 2006 and is fast becoming the growth centre of the region. There are four high schools (Xavier, Southern Cross, Ballina and Emmanuel), five primary schools (Holy family, St. Francis Xavier, Emmanuel, Ballina and Southern Cross), a hospital and aged care facilities.

[edit] Economy

Ballina Beaches.

A report completed in June 2005 estimated that in the 2002-03 FY the total production of goods and services in Ballina Shire was valued at $1.8 billion. Service industries dominate the local economy with 82% of estimated output, followed by manufacturing (13%) and primary industry (5%). The largest single industries are (in order) - construction, property and business services, retail trade, health and community services, education and food manufacturing.

[edit] Airport

The major airport for the region servicing Byron Bay and Lismore is also in Ballina. The airport has links to Melbourne and Sydney with Jetstar, Regional Express and Virgin Blue each operating services. Ballina Airport is located in Southern Cross Drive and is 5 km (3 mi) from the Ballina CBD. The Airport is a 20 minute road trip to Byron Bay and 30 minutes to Lismore. In 2005 the Ballina airport was renamed the Ballina Byron Gateway airport in a bid to attract more people to the area.