Benowa is a
suburb in the
City of Gold Coast
The City of Gold Coast is the local government area spanning the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia and surrounding areas. With a population of 606,774 it is the second most populous local government area in Australia (City of Brisbane being th ...
,
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
, Australia.
In the , Benowa had a population of 8,741 people.
[
]
Geography
Benowa is located west of Surfers Paradise.
There are 3 distinct areas to Benowa. Established Benowa located on the northern side of Ashmore Road, Benowa Hills and Benowa Waters. Benowa is attracting a fair amount of attention from renovators with some of the original homes being built around the 1980s, due to its great proximity to Surfers Paradise, and Broadbeach and with so many great facilities within the area. Benowa is renowned for its canals with easy access to the Nerang River.
History
The name was originally derived from the Bundjalung word ''"Boonow"'', meaning ''bloodwood tree''. This word was later corrupted by European settlers in search of sugar cane growing on the shores of the Nerang River
The Nerang River is a perennial river located in South East Queensland, Australia. Its catchment lies within the Gold Coast local government area and covers an area of . The river is approximately in length.
Course and features
The Nerang R ...
. The name was perpetuated in 1870 when a pioneer named Robert Muir used the name for his sugar plantation on the northern bank of the river.
The Bundall Provisional School opened on 21 September 1885 on the corner of Ashmore Road and Mediterranean Drive under head teacher Edwin Davies. In November 1900 it was renamed Benowa Provisional School. On 1 January 1909, it was relocated the corner of Ashmore Road and Carrara St and became Benowa State School. In 1965 it was relocated to its present site at Benowa Road. The school celebrated its 125th birthday in 2010.
In October 1887, 5 subdivisions comprising the Benowa Estate and Plantation on the Nerang River were advertised to be auctioned by James R. Dickson. A map advertising the auction states the Estate was located 4 miles to Southport bound by a good road on one side and bound by the navigable Nerang River on the other side. Extensive buildings and plant for sugar manufacturing were included on the Estate.
St Kevin's Catholic School opened on 30 January 1979 with principal Elizabeth Newlands and 49 students enrolled in Years 1 and 2. The planning for the school was commenced by under the Vincentian Fathers
, logo =
, image = Vincentians.png
, abbreviation = CM
, nickname = Vincentians, Paules, Lazarites, Lazarists, Lazarians
, established =
, founder = Vincent de Paul
, fou ...
of Southport Parish. On 11 March 1979 it was officially opened and blessed by Archbishop Francis Rush
Francis J. Rush (May 25, 1921 – June 15, 1985) was a Democratic member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
References
Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
1985 deaths
1921 births
20th-ce ...
.
Benowa State High School opened on 29 January 1980.
Demographics
At the , Benowa had a population of 7,979.
In the , Benowa had a population of 8,741 people. The population was 52.6% female and 47.4% male. The median age of the Benowa population was 43 years, 5 years above the national median of 38. 59.0% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were New Zealand 6.0%, England 4.7%, China 3.1%, Japan 1.7% and South Africa 1.5%. 70.2% of people only spoke English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 4.8%, Japanese 2.5%, Cantonese 1.6% and Korean 1.4%. The most common responses for religion were No Religion 28.2%, Catholic 22.9% and Anglican 17.3%.
Heritage listings
There are a number of heritage-listed sites in Benowa, including:
* 173 Ashmore Road: former Benowa Post Office
* 234 Ashmore Road: Rosser's house and gardens
Education
Benowa State School is a government primary (Early Childhood-6) school for boys and girls at 314-358 Benowa Road (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 892 students with 65 teachers (59 full-time equivalent) and 40 non-teaching staff (24 full-time equivalent). It includes a special education
Special education (known as special-needs education, aided education, exceptional education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, or SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates th ...
program. School sports include Australian rules football, touch football, netball
Netball is a ball sport played on a court by two teams of seven players. It is among a rare number of sports which have been created exclusively for female competitors. The sport is played on indoor and outdoor netball courts and is specifical ...
, hockey
Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...
, and soccer.
St Kevin's Catholic School is a Catholic primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at 312 Benowa Road (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 522 students with 37 teachers (31 full-time equivalent) and 21 non-teaching staff (12 full-time equivalent).
Benowa State High School is a government secondary (7-12) school for boys and girls at Mediterranean Drive (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 1894 students with 149 teachers (139 full-time equivalent) and 60 non-teaching staff (47 full-time equivalent). It includes a special education program. Benowa State High School is known for its French immersion course, which started in 1985.
Amenities
The Gold Coast City Council
The City of Gold Coast is the local government area spanning the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia and surrounding areas. With a population of 606,774 it is the second most populous local government area in Australia (City of Brisbane being th ...
operates a fortnightly mobile library
A bookmobile or mobile library is a vehicle designed for use as a library. They have been known by many names throughout history, including traveling library, library wagon, book wagon, book truck, library-on-wheels, and book auto service. Bookm ...
service which visits St Kevins Avenue.
There are a number of parks in the suburb, including:
* Annies Court Parklands ()
* Apex Park (benowa) ()
* Ayrshire Avenue Reserve ()
* Benowa Flood Channel ()
* Benowa Park ()
* Bruce Park ()
* Canara Street Parklands ()
* Carcoola Street Reserve ()
* Gold Coast Regional Botanic Garden - Rosser Park ()
* Gold Market Dr Reserve 1 ()
* Kelly Park ()
* Lunar Court Park ()
* Mediterranean Drive Parklands ()
* Racecourse Drive Paklands ()
* Robert Park ()
* Scenic Park ()
* Sir Bruce Small Park ()
* William Park ()
Sport
Benowa is home to several sports clubs. The Surfers Paradise Australian Football Club are based at Sir Bruce Small Park and compete in the South East Queensland Australian Football League Division 1. The club also plays Cricket in the off season. The Surfers Paradise Baseball Club also play at Sir Bruce Small Park. The Benowa Bowls Club are based at Sir Bruce Small Park also.
The Royal Pines Resort is home to professional Golf tournaments such as the Australian PGA Championship
The Australian PGA Championship is a golf tournament on the PGA Tour of Australasia. It is the home tournament of the Australian PGA. Since 2000 it has been held in the South East Queensland region. The tournament was part of the OneAsia Tour fro ...
and the Australian Ladies Masters. The resort also used to host a professional Tennis event named the Mondial Australian Women's Hardcourts on the WTA Tour
The WTA Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for women organized by the Women's Tennis Association. The second-tier tour is the WTA 125K series, and third-tier is the ITF Women's Circuit. The men's equivalent is the ATP Tour.
WTA Tour tou ...
. The event was moved to Brisbane in 2009. The Tennis facilities are still used by the Australian Fed Cup team to host Fed Cup
The Billie Jean King Cup (or the BJK Cup) is the premier international team competition in women's tennis, launched as the Federation Cup in 1963 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The name was chan ...
ties and Bernard Tomic
Bernard Tomic (; hr, Bernard Tomić, ; born 21 October 1992) is an Australian professional tennis player whose career-high ranking was world No. 17. As a junior, Tomic enjoyed a successful career in which he won an Orange Bowl title and two ju ...
often trains on the courts in the off season.
References
Sources
*
*
External links
*
Heritage Tour – Benowa
{{Localities in Gold Coast
Suburbs of the Gold Coast, Queensland