City of Blue Mountains - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The City of Blue Mountains is a local government area of New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, governed by the Blue Mountains City Council. The city is located in the Blue Mountains range west of Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

Demographics

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics

Australian Bureau of Statistics

The Australian Bureau of Statistics is Australia's national statistical agency. It was created as the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics on 8 December 1905, when the Census and Statistics Act 1905 was given Royal assent. It had its beginnings in section 51 of the Constitution of Australia...

, there:

Were 75,770 people as at 30 June 2006, the 28th largest Local Government Area in New South Wales. It was equal to 1.1% of the New South Wales population of 6,827,694
Was a fall of 505 people over the year to 30 June 2006. It detracted 0.9% from the 58,753 increase in the population of New South Wales
Was, in percentage terms, a decline of 0.7% in the number of people over the year to 30 June 2006. In New South Wales the population grew by 0.9%
Was an increase in population over the 10 years to 30 June 2006 of 890 people or 1.2% (0.1% in annual average terms), the 95th highest rate of a Local Government Area in New South Wales. In New South Wales the population grew by 622,966 or 10% (1.0% in annual average terms) over the same period.

Main towns and villages

The urban part of the city consists of a ribbon of close or contiguous towns which lie on the Main Western railway line

Main Western railway line, New South Wales

The Main Western Railway is a major railway in New South Wales, Australia. It runs through the Blue Mountains, Central West, North West Slopes and the Far West regions.- Description of route :...

(served by CityRail

CityRail

CityRail is an operating brand of RailCorp, a corporation owned by the state government of New South Wales, Australia. It is responsible for providing commuter rail services, and some coach services, in and around Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, the three largest cities of New South Wales. It is...

's Blue Mountains services) and Great Western Highway

Great Western Highway

The Great Western Highway is a highway in New South Wales, Australia. It runs 210 km from Sydney to Bathurst.Starting as Broadway at the intersection of City Road near the fringe of the Sydney CBD, and becoming Parramatta Road to Parramatta itself, the Great Western Highway heads due west from...

between Emu Plains (a western suburb of Sydney) and Lithgow

Lithgow, New South Wales

Lithgow is a city in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia and is the centre of the local political division City of Lithgow. It is located in a mountain valley named Lithgow's Valley by John Oxley in honour of William Lithgow, the first Auditor-General of New South Wales.Lithgow is...

. About 70% of the city's area is within the Blue Mountains National Park

Blue Mountains National Park

The Blue Mountains National Park is a national park in New South Wales, Australia, 81 km west of Sydney, and located in the Blue Mountains region of the Great Dividing Range. The park covers 268,987 hectares. The boundary of the park is quite irregular as it is broken up by roads, urban areas...

which lies north and south of the ribbon of towns. The National Park is part of the much larger Greater Blue Mountains Area

Greater Blue Mountains Area

The Greater Blue Mountains Area is a World Heritage Site in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List at the 24th Session of the World Heritage Committee, held in Cairns from 27 November to 2 December 2000...

World Heritage Site

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...

and the city brands itself as "The City Within a World Heritage National Park".

The two main towns are Springwood

Springwood, New South Wales

Springwood is a town in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia. Springwood is located 72 kilometres west of Sydney in the local government area of the City of Blue Mountains. At the 2006 census, Springwood had a population of 8,210 people. It is largely Anglo-Celtic.Springwood is near the...

(80 kilometres west of Sydney) and Katoomba

Katoomba, New South Wales

Katoomba is the chief town of the City of Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia and the administrative headquarters of Blue Mountains City Council. It is on the Great Western Highway 110 kilometres west of Sydney and 39 kilometres south-east of Lithgow. Katoomba railway station is on the...

(110 kilometres west). The towns of the lower mountains (Lapstone

Lapstone, New South Wales

Lapstone is a small village on the eastern escarpment of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia. Lapstone is located 62 kilometres west of Sydney in the local government area of the City of Blue Mountains and is part of the federal electorate of Macquarie. The village consists mostly of...

, Glenbrook

Glenbrook, New South Wales

Glenbrook is a suburb of the Lower Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 70 kilometres west of Sydney in the local government area of the City of Blue Mountains. At the 2006 census, Glenbrook had a population of 5,138 people....

, Blaxland

Blaxland, New South Wales

Blaxland is a town in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. Blaxland is located 70 kilometres west of Sydney in the local government area of the City of Blue Mountains...

, Mount Riverview

Mount Riverview, New South Wales

Mount Riverview is a town off the Great Western Highway about 2 km NE of Blaxland in the Lower Blue Mountains, New South Wales, 70 kilometres west of Sydney, Australia...

, Warrimoo

Warrimoo, New South Wales

Warrimoo is a village in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. Warrimoo is located 75 kilometres west of Sydney, in the local government area of the City of Blue Mountains...

, Sun Valley

Sun Valley, New South Wales

Sun Valley is an address locality in the state of New South Wales, Australia in the City of Blue Mountains.- References :...

, Valley Heights

Valley Heights, New South Wales

Valley Heights is a small township of the City of Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia. It is approximately from Sydney and is located east of the township of Springwood...

, Springwood

Springwood, New South Wales

, Winmalee

Winmalee, New South Wales

Winmalee is a town in New South Wales, Australia. Winmalee is located 80 kilometres west of Sydney, in the local government area of the City of Blue Mountains. At the 2006 census, Winmalee had a population of 6,345....

, Yellow Rock and Faulconbridge

Faulconbridge, New South Wales

Faulconbridge is a village located in the Blue Mountains 77 km west of Sydney, New South Wales and is 450 metres above sea level. At the 2006 census, Faulconbridge had a population of 4,014 people.-History and Description:...

), tend to be dormitory suburbs for Sydney. This is also the case, to a lesser extent, for the towns of the mid mountains (Linden

Linden, New South Wales

Linden is a village in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. It is in the City of Blue Mountains, 81 km west of Sydney and 19 kms east of Katoomba. The village is on the Great Western Highway and has a railway station on the Main Western railway line served by CityRail's Blue...

, Woodford

Woodford, New South Wales

Woodford is a village in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia, approximately 90 kilometres west of Sydney. Its elevation is above sea level. It is situated on the Great Western Highway and has a railway station on the Main Western railway line served by CityRail's Blue Mountains...

, Hazelbrook

Hazelbrook, New South Wales

Hazelbrook is a village in New South Wales, Australia It is located 93 kilometres west of Sydney and approximately 17 kilometres east of Katoomba in the Blue Mountains on the Great Western Highway...

, Lawson

Lawson, New South Wales

Lawson is a town in the Blue Mountains area of New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Great Western Highway between Hazelbrook in the north east and Bullaburra in the west. At the 2006 census, Lawson had a population of 2,419 people. It has a station on the Main Western line...

and Bullaburra

Bullaburra, New South Wales

Bullaburra is a small town in the state of New South Wales, Australia in the City of Blue Mountains. It is one of the towns that stretch along the route of the Main Western railway line and Great Western Highway which pass over the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney...

) and the upper mountains (Wentworth Falls

Wentworth Falls, New South Wales

Wentworth Falls is a town in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales located 100 kilometres west of Sydney, and about 8 kilometres east of Katoomba, Australia on the Great Western Highway, with a Wentworth Falls railway station on the Main Western line. The town is situated at an elevation of...

, Leura

Leura, New South Wales

Leura is a suburb in the City of Blue Mountains Local Government Area 109 km west of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the series of small towns stretched along the Blue Mountains railway line and Great Western Highway that bisects the Blue Mountains National Park. It is...

, Katoomba

Katoomba, New South Wales

, Medlow Bath

Medlow Bath, New South Wales

Medlow Bath is an Australian small town located near the highest point of the Blue Mountains, between Katoomba and Blackheath. It has an approximate altitude of 1050m and is located approximately 115 kilometres west north west of Sydney and 5 kilometres north west of Katoomba...

, Blackheath

Blackheath, New South Wales

Blackheath is a small town located near the top of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia, 120 kilometres west north west of Sydney and 11 kilometres northwest of Katoomba. In 2006, Blackheath had a population of 4,177 people...

, Mount Victoria

Mount Victoria, New South Wales

Mount Victoria is a small township in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. It is the westernmost village in the City of Blue Mountains, located approximately 120 kilometres via road from Sydney and 1043 metres above sea-level...

and Bell

Bell, New South Wales

Bell is a small rural/residential village in the Blue Mountains with an elevation of approximately 1100 metres above sea level. Bell is approximately 125 km west of Sydney, Australia by road or 137 km by rail, some 20 km east of Lithgow and 10 km north of Mount Victoria. It is a...

). The economy of the upper mountains is dependent almost entirely on tourism

Tourism

Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...

.

The road to Sydney, the Great Western Highway, is mostly dual carriageway

Dual carriageway

A dual carriageway is a class of highway with two carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation...

but is relatively slow due to the urban development and hilly terrain. An electric train service integrates into CityRail

CityRail

, Sydney's suburban rail network.

Council

Blue Mountains City Council is composed of twelve councillors elected proportionally. The city is divided into four wards, each electing three councillors. The mayor is not directly elected. The current makeup of the council is as follows:

Party		Councillors
	Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	3
	Liberal Party of Australia Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...	3
	The Greens Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...	3
	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... s	3
	Total	12

The current council, elected in 2008, is:

Ward	First Ward		Eleanor Gibbs	Greens Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...
	Terri Hamilton	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
	Janet Mays	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
Second Ward		David Clark	Greens Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...
		Chris van der Kley	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
		Adam Searle	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	Mayor
Third Ward		Brendan Luchetti	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
		Daniel Myles	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
		Alison McLaren	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
Fourth Ward		Fiona Creed	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
		Mark Greenhill	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
		Howard McCallum	Greens Australian Greens The Australian Greens, commonly known as The Greens, is an Australian green political party.The party was formed in 1992; however, its origins can be traced to the early environmental movement in Australia and the formation of the United Tasmania Group , the first Green party in the world, which...

Blue Mountains Youth Council

The Blue Mountains Youth Council is a government-related youth voice

Youth voice

Youth voice refers to the distinct ideas, opinions, attitudes, knowledge, and actions of young people as a collective body. The term youth voice often groups together a diversity of perspectives and experiences, regardless of backgrounds, identities, and cultural differences...

program in the City of Blue Mountains.

The Blue Mountains Youth Council was chartered in 2003 after being approved by the city council the previous year. The council was founded with the intention of encouraging youth participation in local politics, hence its affiliation with the city council. Membership requires a signed petition, and members are chosen based on a variety of conditions, including location, age, and diversity. In particular, the council encourages involvement by Aboriginals, disabled youth

Disability

A disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...

, and other minorities.

In the past, the Youth Council has been responsible for organizing community youth events, as well as acting as a bridge between the city council and the youth of the community. The members also travel to various leadership conferences, and share information they learn with their peers.

The Youth Council is supervised by an advisory committee, which is composed of four city councillors. Although the advisory committee has no voting powers, the members serve as mentors to the group.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.