Sunshine Coast Region

It was created by the amalgamation in 2008 of the City of Caloundra and the Shires of Maroochy and Noosa. It contains 4,194 kilometres (2,606 mi) of roads, 211 kilometres (131 mi) of coastline and an estimated resident population of 323,423 (2009). The first budget of the new Council for the 2008-2009 financial year totals A$673 million including $498 million operating expenditure, $168 million capital expenditure and $25.2 million for repayment of loans.

1 History
2 Wards
3 Suburbs
4 Population
5 Sunshine Coast Regional Council
- 5.1 Mayors
- 5.2 Australia Day Awards
6 References
7 External links

History

At the establishment of regional local government in Queensland on 11 November 1879 with the Divisional Boards Act 1879, most of the area was part of the Caboolture Division, while the northernmost part around Noosa was part of the Widgee Division centred on Gympie. The Maroochy Division split away from Caboolture on 5 July 1890. All three divisions became Shires on 31 July 1903 under the Local Authorities Act 1902.

In 1910, the Shire of Noosa split from Widgee, and on 22 February 1912 the Shire of Landsborough split from Caboolture.^[2] The two new entities together with Maroochy were to remain fairly stable for almost 100 years.

On 19 December 1987, the Shire of Landsborough was granted City status, and was renamed the City of Caloundra,^[3] reflecting the population boom in the coastal section of the City.

In July 2007, the Local Government Reform Commission released its report and recommended that the three local governments amalgamate. While it noted all three were "functioning councils with moderate to strong financial performance", it argued that they covered a self-contained region in a geographic, social and economic sense and that the advantages of coordinated planning in a high-growth area and the avoidance of duplication of facilities were arguments in favour of amalgamation. The councils opposed the amalgamation, and the Commission itself noted that the bulk of statewide individual submissions came from this region reflecting a "depth of feeling" regarding the issue.^[4] On 15 March 2008, the City and two Shires formally ceased to exist, and elections were held on the same day to elect twelve councillors and a mayor to the Regional Council.

Wards

The Region is divided into 12 divisions, each represented by one councillor, plus an elected mayor who represents the entire Region. The council is elected for a four-year term.

Suburbs

Main article: List of Sunshine Coast suburbs

Population

The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008. The next census, due in 2011, will be the first for the new Region.

Year	Population (Region total)	Population (Caloundra)	Population (Maroochy)	Population (Noosa)
1933	23,438	4,752	12,918	5,768
1947	27,399	6,460	15,014	5,925
1954	31,930	7,765	17,869	6,296
1961	33,507	8,319	19,071	6,117
1966	36,926	8,798	21,455	6,673
1971	44,582	11,314	25,522	7,746
1976	63,073	16,982	35,266	10,825
1981	100,204	29,705	53,428	17,071
1986	118,443	36,486	61,629	20,328
1991	167,254	53,434	84,442	29,378
1996	219,305	66,336	111,798	41,171
2001	252,011	75,261	129,429	47,321
2006	293,902	90,341	151,599	51,962