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City of Lake Macquarie New South Wales
Lake Macquarie, after which the LGA is named
Location in Greater Newcastle
Coordinates	33°02′S 151°38′E / 33.033°S 151.633°E / -33.033; 151.633
Population	213,845 (2021 census) (23rd)
• Density	315/km (820/sq mi)
Established	1906 (shire) 1977 (municipality) 1984 (city)
Area	648 km (250.2 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10)
• Summer (DST)	AEDT (UTC+11)
Mayor	Adam Shultz (Labor)
Council seat	Speers Point
Region	Hunter
State electorate(s)	Lake Macquarie Swansea Charlestown Cessnock Wallsend
Federal division(s)	Shortland Hunter
Website	City of Lake Macquarie
LGAs around City of Lake Macquarie: Maitland Newcastle Newcastle Cessnock City of Lake Macquarie Tasman Sea Central Coast, Cessnock Central Coast Tasman Sea

The City of Lake Macquarie is a local government area in the Hunter Region in New South Wales, Australia. It was proclaimed a city from 7 September 1984. The city is situated adjacent to the city of Newcastle and is widely considered as a part of the Greater Newcastle area. The city is approximately 150 km (93 mi) north of Sydney. One of its major tourist attractions is its lake, also named Lake Macquarie.

The mayor of the City of Lake Macquarie Council is Councillor Adam Shultz, a member of the Labor Party.

The Royal Australian Navy ship HMAS Tobruk was granted the Right of Freedom of Entry to the City of Lake Macquarie on 9 August 1991.

History

The Shire of Lake Macquarie was proclaimed on 6 March 1906. It became a Municipality on 1 March 1977, and a city on 7 September 1984.

Suburbs, towns and villages

Lake Macquarie is home to several prominent coastal suburbs such as Catherine Hill Bay, Caves Beach, Blacksmiths and Redhead. Retail and commercial centres include Belmont, Cardiff, Charlestown Glendale, Swansea, Toronto and Morisset.

The towns and villages in the City of Lake Macquarie are split into three wards – East, North and West. These include:

The Australian Bureau of Statistics classifies various towns and suburbs in the LGA as being part of the Greater Newcastle Statistical District. The City of Lake Macquarie has its own independent local government (Lake Macquarie City Council). The largest commercial centre in the area is Charlestown.

Demographics

The area is a set of contiguous towns that surround a coastal saltwater lake. These towns merge with the suburbs of Newcastle to the north. Some suburbs, such as Adamstown Heights are partly in the City of Newcastle and partly within the City of Lake Macquarie. There are 92 identified settlements ranging from small rural style communities through to larger and higher density areas such as Toronto, Warners Bay, Belmont, Charlestown and Morisset.

At the 2011 census, there were 189,006 people in the Lake Macquarie local government area, of these 48.8% were male and 51.2% were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 3.0% of the population, which was higher than the national and state averages. The median age of people in the City of Lake Macquarie was 41 years, which was significantly higher than the national median of 37 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 18.6% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 18.4% of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 51.0% were married and 12.2% were either divorced or separated.

Population growth in the City of Lake Macquarie between the 2001 census and the 2006 census was 3.36%; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 Census, population growth was 3.20%. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78% and 8.32% respectively, population growth in Lake Macquarie local government area was approximately half the national average. The median weekly income for residents within the City of Lake Macquarie was marginally below the national average.

At the 2011 Census, the proportion of residents in the Lake Macquarie local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Celtic exceeded 81% of all residents (national average was 65.2%). In excess of 58% of all residents in the City of Lake Macquarie nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity at the 2011 census, which was slightly higher than the national average of 50.2%. Meanwhile, as at the census date, compared to the national average, households in the Lake Macquarie local government area had a significantly lower than average proportion (5.4%) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4%); and a significantly higher proportion (93.0%) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8%).

Selected historical census data for Lake Macquarie local government area

Census year			2001	2006	2011	2016	2021
Population		Estimated residents on Census night	177,185	183,138	189,006	197,371	213,845
		LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales		4th	4th	13th
		% of New South Wales population			2.73%	2.64%	2.65%
		% of Australian population	0.94%	0.92%	0.88%	0.84%	0.84%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		Australian			33.7%	32.0%	42.7%
		English			32.2%	31.9%	43.9%
		Scottish			8.2%	8.6%	11.8%
		Irish			7.7%	8.3%	10.9%
		German			3.0%	3.1%
Language, top responses (other than English)		Italian	0.3%	0.3%	0.3%	0.2%
		Macedonian	0.3%	0.3%	0.3%	0.3%	0.2%
		Mandarin				0.3%	0.3%
		Italian				0.3%	0.2%
		German	0.3%	0.3%	0.3%	0.2%	0.2%
		Cantonese	n/c	0.2%	0.2%
		Spanish	n/c	n/c	0.2%	0.2%	0.2%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		No Religion	12.5%	15.5%	19.7%	28.9%	42.0%
		Anglican	29.1%	27.6%	26.2%	21.3%	15.7%
		Catholic	23.0%	22.9%	22.8%	20.8%	18.0%
		Uniting Church	10.0%	8.8%	5.8%	5.9%	4.1%
		Presbyterian and Reformed	4.4%	4.0%	3.6%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income		A$394	A$520	A$609	A$759
		% of Australian median income		84.5%	90.1%	92%	94.3%
Family income		Median weekly family income		A$922	A$1,396	A$1,610	A$2,050
		% of Australian median income		89.8%	94.3%	92.8%	96.7%
Household income		Median weekly household income		A$1,102	A$1,177	A$1,313	A$1,623
		% of Australian median income		94.1%	90.5%	91.3%	93.0%

Economics

Lake Macquarie has a significant coal mining industry and smaller agriculture and manufacturing industries. Eraring power station, a 1980s-era coal-fired power station, supplies 25% of New South Wales' power. Lake Macquarie has a number of Constructed Wetlands with the council placing an emphasis on the environment.

Council

Current composition and election method

Lake Macquarie City Council is composed of thirteen councillors, including the mayor, for a fixed four-year term of office. The mayor is directly elected while the twelve other Councillors are elected proportionally as three separate wards, each electing four Councillors. The most recent election was held on 14 September 2024, and the makeup of the council, including the mayor, is as follows:

The current Council, elected in 2024, in order of election by ward, is:

Election results

2024

2024 New South Wales local elections: Lake Macquarie

Party			Votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
	Labor		46,239	35.2	−4.0	5	1
	Liberal		30,363	23.1	−2.6	3
	Lake Mac Independents		28,530	21.7	+2.3	3
	Greens		13,257	10.1	+0.3	0
	Community First Independents		2,942	2.2		0
	Our Local Community		2,819	2.1		0
	Independents		7,221	5.5	+1.9	1	1
Formal votes			131,371	92.8
Informal votes			10,133	7.2
Total			141,504			12
Registered voters / turnout

2021

2021 New South Wales local elections: Lake Macquarie

Party			Votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
	Labor		50,340	39.2		6	1
	Liberal		33,078	25.7		3
	Lake Mac Independents		24,922	19.4		3
	Greens		12,571	9.8		0
	Independent		4,661	3.6		0
	Shooters, Fishers, Farmers		29,80	2.3		0
Formal votes			128,552

Shopping

Major shopping centres include:

• Charlestown Square
• Stockland Glendale
• Lake Macquarie Square

Arts and culture

Lake Macquarie has a number of cultural and artistic locations:

• Dobell House – last residence of William Dobell, Wangi Wangi
• Finite Gallery, Caves Beach Fine Arts and Crafts
• Lake Macquarie City Art Gallery, Booragul
• South Sea Islands Museum and Sunnyside Historic Home, Cooranbong
• The Friends of Rathmines Incorporated, Rathmines Park

Sister cities

The City of Lake Macquarie has sister city relations with the following cities:

• Hakodate, Hokkaidō, Japan
• Tanagura, Fukushima, Japan
• Rotorua, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand
• Round Rock, Texas, United States of America

Notes

1. ^ Shared with City of Newcastle

References

1. ^ "2021 Lake Macquarie, Census All persons QuickStats". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
2. Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "2011 Community Profiles: Lake Macquarie (Local Government Area)". 2011 Census of Population and Housing. Retrieved 10 September 2012.
3. "Suburb Search – Local Council Boundaries – Hunter (HT) – Lake Macquarie City Council". New South Wales Division of Local Government. Archived from the original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
4. "Lake Macquarie Electoral District". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
5. "Swansea Electoral District". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
6. "Charlestown Electoral District". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
7. "Cessnock Electoral District". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
8. "Wallsend Electoral District". New South Wales Electoral Commission. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
9. "Shortland". Australian Electoral Commission. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 24 December 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2012.
10. "3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017–18". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019. Estimated resident population (ERP) at 30 June 2018.
11. "Greater Newcastle metropolitan planning – Department of Planning and Environment". planning.nsw.gov.au. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
12. "Lake Macquarie City Council Results (2016)". Lake Macquarie City Council. 19 September 2016. Archived from the original on 26 March 2017. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
13. Piper, Greg (April 2010). "Legend of ANZAC". p. 6. Archived from the original on 8 October 2011. Retrieved 15 June 2011.
14. "Council History: Lake Macquarie City Council". City of Lake Macquarie. 2 March 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2008.
15. "Hunter History Highlights". Hunter Valley Research Foundation. Archived from the original on 25 December 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2008.
16. "Updated Ward Boundaries". Retrieved 30 March 2024.
17. Shared with North Ward
18. Shared with Central Coast Council
19. Shared with Central Coast Council
20. Shared with North Ward
21. Shared with East Ward
22. Shared with East Ward
23. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Lake Macquarie (C) (Local Government Area)". 2011 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 10 September 2012.
24. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (9 March 2006). "Lake Macquarie (C)". 2001 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
25. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (25 October 2007). "Lake Macquarie (C)". 2006 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
26. Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Lake Macquarie (C)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
27. "Eraring Power Station". Hunter New England Area Health Service. 2005. Archived from the original on 13 November 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2008.
28. "City of Lake Macquarie". ABC News.
29. "Arts and Culture – Lake Macquarie NSW Accommodation & Holiday Rentals – tourist visitor information & guide, accommodation bookings, attractions, activities, NSW maps & much more". Retrieved 31 March 2016.
30. "Sister Cities". Lake Macquarie City Council. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
31. "Round Rock, Texas Political Structure". Round Rock City Council. Archived from the original on 13 August 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2020.

External links

• Lake Macquarie City Council
• Lake Macquarie Business Directory Archived 29 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine
• Lake Macquarie City
• Clickable map of New South Wales LGAs (NSW Dept. of Local Government)
• Rathmines Community Website and Forum Archived 21 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine
• "Shires of Australia". Statoids.

• City of Lake Macquarie
• Coastal cities in Australia