CITY OF THURINGOWA
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The 'City of Thuringowa' () is a Local Government Area in northern Queensland, Australia with a population of 59,164 people and covers the northern and western parts of the urban area usually referred to locally as "the Twin Cities". Prior to its proclamation as a city on 1 January 1986, Thuringowa was a large rural shire, almost surrounding the city of Townsville. Thuringowa was named after the German region of Thuringia where the shire's first chairman, John von Stieglitz originated.[2]
Thuringowa CBD[3] is situated at latitude and longitude of 19°19′04S 146°44′32E.
Thuringowa is not, as is often assumed, part of the City of Townsville and has a separate identity, history and rateable area. Thuringowa Council is trying to educate residents on the difference between the two cities as when people move from Townsville to Thuringowa some do not realise that it is a different city with different local laws and rates.[4]
Brief History
.
What is now the Thuringowa City Council started as the Thuringowa Divisional Board in 1879.[5]
Prior to European settlement, the Nyawaygi Aboriginal people lived in the area around Thuringowa, Townsville and the Burdekin. The earliest European on record to live in Thuringowa was James Morrill whose boat washed ashore in 1846.
In 1860, the newly formed Queensland Government passed an act opening up the area to pastoral leases, and by 1861 there were many runs in Thuringowa. By 1865, Robert Towns and John Melton Black had purchased a number of properties throughout Thuringowa. In 1865 Robert Towns built a boiling down works - at the time, there was no facilities for shipping cattle or sheep, so in 1865 Andrew Ball and Mark Reid left Woodstock Station to find a harbour around the Cleveland Bay shores and the Town and port of Townsville was established at the mouth of Ross Creek.
In 1879, the Division was formed and considerable progress ensued over the following decades - by 1902, Thuringowa had 1,020 dwellings listed on its ratebooks. Early chairmen Arthur Bundock and Joseph Hodel were involved in construction of key architecture such as the Ross River Bridge, the bridge at the Causeway and the Stuart Creek Bridge. These roads and bridges were constructed to serve not only Thuringowa's rural base but also the residential subdivisions of Hermit Park, Mundingburra and Rosslea. Water reticulation and sanitary services were established in these suburbs and street lighting and beautification work carried out along Charters Towers Road. Also during this period the Council's first administration building was constructed at the Causeway, near the intersection of Flinders Street West and Ingham Road, which are now part of Townsville.
Under the 1902 Local Authorities Act, divisional areas were renamed shires, and on 31 March 1903, Thuringowa Shire Council came into being. The period up to 1918 was one of consolidation and minor works, not major projects.
In 1918, much of Thuringowa's urban area was transferred to Townsville. This initially caused great hardship for the Shire, as its rate base had been reduced to 2,500 ratepayers and its council headquarters was based outside the shire. The Council adopted a conservative approach to policy during this period that included not only the depression years of the 1930s but also during World War II, when the area became an important staging point and was host to significant numbers of military personnel.
From the 1960s onwards, significant suburban development and growth took place in the area and Council business was preoccupied with providing new facilities and infrastructure. In 1979, a new Shire administration centre was constructed, moving it back into the local area, and on 1 January 1986, the Shire became a City.
Thuringowa Celebrated its 125th birthday in 2004.
Demographics
Thuringowa has grown in population rapidly, with a local member of Parliament claiming it is one of the fastest growing local government areas in Australia.[6] The population has increased from 26,000 in 1986 to over 63,000 as of 2006.
| year | population projection[7] |
|---|---|
| 2006 | 61 329 |
| 2011 | 72 337 |
| 2016 | 83 655 |
| 2021 | 94 052 |
| 2026 | 104 751 |
| year | area (km²) | population[8][9] | - - - - - - - - | year | population |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1879 | 7 612 | 2 000 | 1996 | 45 410 +5.1% since 1991 | |
| 1936 | 4 203 | 1 500 | 1997 | 46 417 | |
| 1971 | 4 100 | 3 432 | 1998 | 47 762 | |
| 1978 | 12 900 | 1999 | 49 279 | ||
| 1988 | 32 900 | 2000 | 51 185 | ||
| 1991 | 35 331 | 2001 | 52 715 +16.1% since 1996 | ||
| 1992 | 36 962 | 2002 | 54 520 (+3.4%) | ||
| 1993 | 40 062 | 2003 | 55 951 (+2.6%) | ||
| 1994 | 1 860 | 41 814 | 2004 | 57 538 (+2.8%) | |
| 1995 | 43 904 | 2005 | 59 231 (+2.9%) |
Thuringowa City Suburbs
Economy
Recently a new $1 billion 5,000-lot housing estate was announced for the northern part of the city, just off the Bruce Highway. It is the biggest ever planned housing estate in North Queensland.[10] Although primarily a residential area, Thuringowa does include several significant industrial and commercial enterprises, notably the Yabulu nickel refinery.
Thuringowa City Council recently gave approval to a new 10-storey hotel complex across the road from the Riverway Complex, stage one of Riverway was opened to the public on 8 July 2006 during the river festival.[11]
Thuringowa was named the North Queensland tidiest town for 2005-06.[12]
Tourism and recreation
Riverway is a riverfront parkland attraction overlooking Ross River, and includes Pioneer Park, which features two swimming lagoons and a beach. This area also comprises a cultural centre, art gallery, amphitheatre, cafés, restaurant and skate park. A new stadium is due for completion in late 2007.[13]Riverway also includes Apex Park, Ross Park, the Ross River Dam and Loam island.
''More: ''
Facilities and Services
Education
Kirwan State High School is a coeducational state school located in Thuringowa CBD, It has 1945 students and over 120 teaching staff[14] and Thuringowa State High School is situated on Vickers Road South in the Upper Ross community in the suburb of Condon, Queensland.
The school opened in 1987 with students in years 8, 9 and 11, the schools main achievements are Sporting and the Theatre Restaurant (State finalist in the inaugural Showcase Awards).[15]
Health Services
Due to Thuringowa losing it's only hospital in 2002 when it was incorporated into the new Townsville Hospital that the Queensland Government built, Thuringowa now relies on the 3 hospitals based in Townsville.[16]
Thuringowa does have a number of medical centres and doctor surgery’s within the city and the out lying areas, The largest is the Kirwan Health Campus located on Thuringowa drive, this used to be the Woman and Children’s Hospital and was Thuringowa’s only Hospital.[17]
The old Kirwan Woman And Children Hospital is now the state of the art Kirwan Health Campus and is the largest in Australia.[18] The Thuringowa City Council found that with the increasing number of people moving to the northern beaches area a medical centre was needed in that area, so the Bluewater Medical Practice was built.[19] The beachside community of Bushland Beach has also seen a large increase of residents so this medical centre opened on January 23, 2006.[20]
Media
Most of Thuringowa Media services are Townsville-based such as TV, Radio and Newspaper however Thuringowa does have several small publications.
'The Sun Newspaper' is a free weekly publication distributed to 52,713 homes in the urban and rural suburbs of Thuringowa and Townsville,[21] it is published by News Limited and printed with the Townsville Bulletin's printer. It was Previously called the Twin cities advertiser before being split into 'The Thuringowa Sun' and 'The Townsville Sun', but after a few years The Thuringowa Sun Merged with the Townsville Sun to form 'The Sun' newspaper of today.[22]
The 'Townsville Bulletin' is a Townsville based daily newspaper that has a distribution covering a large number of towns and cities in North Queensland. The paper's main focus is news and events within the Thuringowa and Townsville area but also covers state, national and world news.[23]
'The Express' started printing in 1996 and is delivered monthly to homes free in the Townsville and Thuringowa cities. The Express is published by Poinciana Publishing Thuringowa and printed by the North Queensland Newspaper Company.[24]
The Express promotes business thought-out the Thuringowa and Townsville region.[24]
The 'Thuringowan' is a monthly publication from the Thuringowa city council that first went to print in May 2005, it covers news and events within the city.[26]
Transport
Main articles: Transport in Townsville, Queensland
Thuringowa is serviced by many major arterial routes as well as numerous state routes. The Northern Beaches district is serviced by the A1 (Bruce Highway) or the National Highway 1.
Urban Thuringowa will become part of the A1 route, as the Townsville/Thuringowa Ring Road (known as The Ring Road) will become the new National Highway route through the city.[27] The first stage, the 5.3 km Douglas Arterial Road, opened to traffic in April 2005.[28]
Public transport in Thuringowa consists of bus services run by Sunbus.[29] Sunbus provides services for most parts of the city with runs from the Thuringowa CBD to most suburbs and thought-out Townsville.[29]
There is also a bus service available from the Townsville's Hermit Park Bus Service, running from Townsville CBD to Bushland Beach.[31]
Taxis operate 24 hours and service all parts of Thuringowa.[32]
Thuringowa is serviced by the nearby Townsville International Airport.
Climate
--2006AD.gif)
The climate of Thuringowas neighbour city Townsville as measured and recorded at the Aero.
The city of Thuringowa with its main suburbs lies (like its neighbour city Townsville) (see diagram) in the wet-dry tropics, which are characterised by hot and rainy summers (wet season) and warm and dry winters (dry season). However, to the area of the city which also belongs to the Paluma Range, which in its higher altitudes is characterised by a year-round relatively cool and moist climate, thus belonging to the Wet Tropics of Queensland and to the so-named World Heritage area.
In Novermber 2006 the Thuringowa City Council decided to install a WM20 weather station in Thuringowa, this will provide Thuringowa residents with more accurate weather conditions and act as a marketing tool for the city. The station will cost between $12,500 and $26,500 depending on location, with possible locations including the Civic Centre, Mt Low or Deeragun.[33] Although the data will not be officially recognised by the Bureau of Meteorology, it will be close to their standards and will be particularly useful for environmental, industrial, agricultural monitoring and research.[34] the weather conditions will be published on the Council website to provide alternative and more accurate information than the Townsville based Mt Stuart Weather Station.[35]
Recreation and Culture
Pursuits popular among Thuringowa residents include swimming, fishing, water skiing, movies, bird watching and golf.
Volunteer Emergency Services
One of the major volunteer organisations represented in Thuringowa is the Rural Fire Service. Thuringowa Group Rural Fire Brigades provide bush fire mitigation and suppression services to the local communities. Funded by rural fire levies paid by landowners via council rates, the volunteer fire brigades respond primarily to bush fire emergencies, but also assist with motor vehicle accidents, floods, storm, structural fire, cyclone, search and rescue and other activities. Thuringowa Group Brigades were among the first to respond to devastation in Innisfail following severe tropical cyclone Larry in 2006.
Arts and entertainment
Entertainment facilities include:
★ Riverway (swimming lagoons, performance areas and art gallery)
★ Reading Cinemas
★ Brothers Leagues Club
★ Kirwan Tenpin Bowling
★ Barra Fishing Farm, Kelso (mini golf, barramundi fishing)
★ Freckles fun factory
★ Dairy Farmers Stadium, home of the North Queensland Cowboys Rugby League club
Sport
The Dairy Farmers Stadium, located in the suburb of Kirwan, was constructed in 1995 with a seating capacity of 30,000 after it was announced that the Twin Cities would be home to a Australian Rugby League team, and the stadium is today the home ground for the North Queensland Cowboys.[36] The stadium was previously known as Stockland Stadium and Malanda Stadium in the past.[37]
In 2003, Dairy Farmers Stadium was chosen to host three games for the 2003 Rugby World Cup, and hosted the Japanese team.[38] On 12 May 2006, the final home season match of the Super 14 between Queensland Reds and the Highlanders was played at the stadium[39] The Reds normally play their home games at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane.
The Riverway is a major urban and recreational development that will have a new cricket and Australian rules football stadium.[40]
On New Years Eve 2008, the new 10,000 capacity Riverway Stadium will see the Queensland Bulls play against the Victorian Bushrangers. This will be the first match in the expanded Twenty20 competition as part of the 2007-08 interstate program.[41]
Greenwood Park Sporting complex was officially opened on February 15, 2007.[42] It features 8 fully lit Touch Football fields as well as carparking and a fully licenced clubhouse which is home to Redskins Touch Club and Thuringowa Touch Association.[43]
The Willows Golf Club, an international-standard golf course with a 72-hectare (180-acre) golf wildlife sanctuary, is home to the Queensland Masters, an annual tournament which is a joint initiative between the PGA Tour of Australasia and the PGA Tour.[44] The area is also home to a residential estate.
Thuringowa has a 1/4 mile drag strip,[45] a dirt track speedway,[46] sealed go-cart track,[47] motocross training track,[48] fishing farm,[49] rodeo[50] and a Bowhunters club.[51]
Although some of the above listed venues have Townsville in their names thay are based in Thuringowa.
Beaches
Thuringowa's beaches[52] (known as the Northern Beaches) are popular with families and provide a habitat for a number of seabirds.[53]
★ 'Bushland Beach' is home to a growing residential community, and features a shipwreck, ponds with marine life, boat ramp, barbecues, playgrounds, hotel and resort.
★ 'Saunders Beach', one of Thuringowa's more popular beaches features a long sandy beach and boat ramp.
★ 'Toolakea Beach' is quieter, but is popular for bird watching and fishing.
★ 'Toomulla Beach' is more isolated, and features camping and picnic areas, boat ramp and bird watching.
★ 'Balgal Beach', 50 km north of Thuringowa CBD, is popular for fishing trips, especially to the nearby Palm Islands.
Nearby townships of Balgal and Rollingstone have golf courses and a range of holiday accommodation.
Governance
Chairpersons and Mayors of Thuringowa[54]
| Name | Year | Name | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880-82 | William Aplin | 1914-15 | Edward Crowder or Joseph Hodel |
| 1882-83 | F. Gordon | 1915-16 | Joseph Hodel |
| 1883-84 | James Miller and Arthur Bundock | 1916-17 | Edward Crowder |
| 1884-85 | William Clayton and Arthur Bundock | 1917-20 | William Ireland |
| 1885-88 | Arthur Bundock | 1920-29[55] | James Cummins |
| 1888-90 | Frederick Johnson | 1930-48 | Charles Wordsworth |
| 1890-91 | Joseph Hodel | March-May 1949 | James Kelso |
| 1891-92 | Joseph Hodel and Frederick Johnson | 1949-60 | W.H.F. Wordsworth |
| 1892-1898 | Joseph Hodel | 1961-1966 | J. R. Brabon |
| 1898-1900 | Robert Mawby | 1967-1969 | William DeCourcey |
| 1900-01 | Frederick Johnson | 1970-73 | J. R. Brabon |
| 1901-10 | Joseph Hodel | 1973-76 | William DeCourcey |
| 1910-12 | Henry Abbot | 1976-91 | Dan Gleeson (Mayor 86-91) |
| 1912-14 | Joseph Hodel | 1991-current | Les Tyrell |
Review of council boundaries
As part of the review of councils and boundaries conducted in 2007 by the Queensland Government, it has been recommended that the City of Thuringowa is merged into the City of Townsville, with the merged entity to be referred to as the City of Townsville.[56] Reasons cited for the merger of the two councils include:
#the economies of the two areas being inextricably linked;
#Townsville being the major regional centre for North Queensland;
#Thuringowa being a dormitory area for Townsville, with 65% of employed people working in Townsville City;
#No natural barriers between the two areas; and
#the creation of a larger and better resourced local government entity is essential for dealing with large scale economic development in the area.
References
1. 2006 Census
2. Save Thuringowa Daniel Bateman
3. http://townsvillebulletin.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,7034,20600364%255E14787,00.html
4. http://www.loc-gov-focus.aus.net/editions/2005/august/recog.shtml
5. History of Thuringowa Thuringowa City Council
6. http://www.peterlindsay.com.au/electorate.asp
7. Thuringowa Population
8. Australian Bureau of Statistics - Regional Population Growth, Australia
9. Thuringowa City Council - "About Thuringowa City Council" ''Statistics - Area and Population''
10. Thuringowa population and Housing estate
11. http://riverway.thuringowa.qld.gov.au/index
12. Thuringowa NQ tidiest town
13. http://riverway.thuringowa.qld.gov.au/about/index
14. http://www.kirwanshs.qld.edu.au/
15. http://www.thuringoshs.qld.edu.au/profile.htm
16. http://www.health.qld.gov.au/townsville/Facilities/tville_hosp.asp
17. http://www.health.qld.gov.au/townsville/Services/KirwanHealthCampus.asp
18. http://searchingforhelp.com.au/pages/news/2006_June/news076.html
19. http://www.tdgp.com.au/bluewater.shtml
20. http://www.tdgp.com.au/bushlandbeach.shtml
21. http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/publications/townsville_sun.html
22. http://www.library.jcu.edu.au/Specials/Nqnewspapers/data.shtml
23. http://www.townsvillebulletin.com.au/more/about_us.html
24. The Express Page 1 and 2
25. The Express Page 1 and 2
26. http://www.thuringowa.qld.gov.au/resident/thuringowan
27. http://www.mainroads.qld.gov.au/MRWEB/PROD/Content.nsf/DOCINDEX/The+Ring+Road+Sections+2+and+3+(Shaw+Road+and+Condon+Sections)?OpenDocument
28. The Ring Road (Douglas Section) - Frequently asked questions Department of Main Roads (QLD)
29. http://www.sunbus.com.au/tt_townsville.php
30. http://www.sunbus.com.au/tt_townsville.php
31. http://www.hpbs.com.au/Text/1128656030140-5887/Bushland-Beach-Bus
32. http://qldtaxi.com.au/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=26
33. Local weather report
34. Thuringowa City Council Media release - "Thuringowa to secure weather station"
35. Tower station aims to monitor climate Selina Sharratt
36. http://www.cowboys.com.au/cowboys.php?index=8.1
37. http://www.austadiums.com/stadiums/stadiums.php?id=40
38. http://www.rugbyheaven.smh.com.au/rwc2003/venues/townsville/
39. 2006 Super 14 Tournament ABC Sport/Sportsflash
40. http://www.riverway.thuringowa.qld.gov.au/stadium Riverway Stadium
41. http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,21813867-10389,00.html
42. http://www.thuringowa.qld.gov.au/news/index?media_id=1025
43. http://www.rebelssoccerclub.org.au/index.htm
44. Queensland Masters Golf Tournament The Willows Golf Club
45. http://www.townsvilledragway.com/
46. http://www.racefan.com/showtrack.asp?id=1931
47. http://www.townsvillekartclub.com.au/html/track_location.html
48. http://www.yamaha-motor.com.au/motor/stephen_gall/images/maps/townsville_map.gif
49. http://www.kidsparties.cc/index.php?option=com_bookmarks&Itemid=21&task=detail&catid=76&navstart=0&mode=0&id=127&search=
★
50. http://www.blackriverstadium.com.au/map-access.html
51. http://www.truelocal.com.au/business/townsville-district-bowhunters/condon
52. http://static.townsvillebulletin.com.au/drive/paluma.pdf. (see Day 1 - Townsville to Paluma on this page)
53. http://www.townsvilleholidays.info/rtn2/index.cfm?0C62ADD6-D3B3-049D-3208-C03E4C22185A
54. INFORMATION SHEET NUMBER 10 - CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF CHAIRMEN AND MAYORS Thuringowa Library Heritage Services
55. From 1921, chairpersons were elected for three year terms by the constituency; prior to this they were elected yearly by fellow councilors.
56.
External links
★ Thuringowa City Council
★ History of the area
★ More history of Thuringowa, including searchable historical image collection - from Thuringowa Library Heritage Services
Suburbs of Thuringowa
'4815' (Urban):
Condon ,
Kelso ,
Pinnacles ,
Rasmussen.
'4816' (Rural):
Balgal Beach ,
Mutarnee ,
Pamula ,
Rollingstone ,
Toomulla.
'4817' (Urban and Rural):
Alice River ,
Bohle Plains ,
Kirwan,
Thuringowa CBD.
'4818' (rural):
Black River ,
Bluewater ,
Bohle ,
Burdell ,
Bushland Beach ,
Deeragun ,
Jensen ,
Mount Low ,
Saunders Beach ,
Shaw ,
Toolakea ,
Yabulu.
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