The City of Boroondara () is a

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

in Victoria, Australia. It is located in the eastern suburbs of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. It was formed in June 1994 from the amalgamation of the Cities of

Kew Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is a ...

Camberwell Camberwell () is a district of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles and a common of which Goose Green is a remnant. This e ...

and

Hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

. It has an area of . In June 2018 the City had a population of 181,289. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. Boroondara was rated ninth of 590 Australian local government areas in the

BankWest Bankwest is an Australian full-service bank based in Perth, Western Australia. It was sold in October 2008 to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia for 2.1 billion and operates as a division of its parent company. Bankwest previously had branch ...

Quality of Life Index 2008, and first in a 2013 Victoria-wide community satisfaction survey.

History

This area was originally occupied by the

Wurundjeri The Wurundjeri people are an Australian Aboriginal people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin nation. They are the Traditional Owners of the Birrarung (Yarra River) Valley, covering much of the present location of Narrm (Melbourne ...

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

of the

Kulin nation The Kulin nation is an alliance of five Aboriginal nations in south central Victoria, Australia. Their collective territory extends around Port Phillip and Western Port, up into the Great Dividing Range and the Loddon and Goulburn River valley ...

. In 1837, John Gardiner (after whom

Gardiners Creek Gardiners Creek, originally known as Kooyongkoot Creek, is a waterway in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, and part of the Yarra River catchment. In a few sparse locations remnant riparian bushland survives, however the majority of its length has ...

was named) and his family were the first Europeans to settle in the area.

Robert Hoddle Robert Hoddle (21 April 1794 – 24 October 1881) was a surveyor and artist. He is best known as the surveyor general of the Port Phillip District (later known as the Australian state of Victoria) from 1837 to 1853, especially for creation of ...

surveyed the area in 1837 and declared it the "Parish of Boroondara". The area was densely wooded, so he took a word from the

Woiwurrung The Woiwurrung, also spelt Woi Wurrung, Woiwurrong, Woiworung, Wuywurung, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin people, Kulin alliance. The Woiwurrung people's territory in Central Victoria (Austral ...

language (as spoken by the

), meaning "where the ground is thickly shaded". The first Local Government body was the Boroondara District Road Board, formed on 11 July 1854 and incorporating the areas which were to become the

City of Hawthorn The City of Hawthorn was a local government area about east of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia, on the southeast bank of the Yarra River. The city covered an area of , and existed from 1860 until 1994. History Hawthorn ...

City of Kew The City of Kew was a local government area about east of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia, on the southeast bank of the Yarra River. The city covered an area of , and existed from 1860 until 1994. History Kew was first ...

and City of Camberwell. Hawthorn and Kew were created as separate municipalities in 1860 and the remaining area of the Road Board became Shire of Boroondara on 17 November 1871, which later became the City of Camberwell. Accessed at

State Library of Victoria State Library Victoria (SLV) is the state library of Victoria, Australia. Located in Melbourne, it was established in 1854 as the Melbourne Public Library, making it Australia's oldest public library and one of the first free libraries in the ...

, La Trobe Reading Room. The three municipalities were amalgamated in June 1994 to create the City of Boroondara. Existing councillors from the three municipalities were replaced initially by three commissioners - David Glanville (chair), David Thomas and Marion Macleod. The commissioners were in turn replaced by ten councillors following elections in 1996.

Local government

Boroondara City Council is the third tier of government and deals with services such as waste and recycling collection, leisure centres, building and planning permits and approvals, roads, drainage, health services, youth services, children's services, food safety, parks and gardens, library services, pets, street parking permits and the collection of

rates Rate or rates may refer to: Finance * Rates (tax), a type of taxation system in the United Kingdom used to fund local government * Exchange rate, rate at which one currency will be exchanged for another Mathematics and science * Rate (mathema ...

and charges.

Current composition and election method

Boroondara City Council is composed of eleven councillors, each representing one of eleven

wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...

. On Thursday 9 July 2020, the Minister for Local Government formally announced a change to Boroondara’s electoral structure. This change follows a review by the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC), which was completed in June 2019. This change included an increase in ward and councillor numbers from 10 to 11. The new 11th ward is named Riversdale Ward, and is located to the south-west where it shares a boundary with Glenferrie, Junction and Gardiner Wards. This addition resulted in a number of boundary changes across the municipality. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic threatened to disrupt the local elections, with some arguing that the inability to campaign in-person would benefit incumbents with name-recognition, or resource rich candidates who could invest in letter box campaigns with leaflets. A decision was made, on public health grounds, that it was safe to proceed with the elections and voters were only able to return their ballots via postal voting. All councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office, with the most recent election being held in December 2022. Councillors-elect were sworn-in at a Special Meeting of Council on Thursday 8 December 2022. The current mayor is Cr Felicity Sinfield.

Past councillors

Single member wards, 1996-2019

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

''1.'' Gina Goldsmith ''2.'' Phil Meggs ''3.'' Dennis Whelan ''4.'' Mary Halikias-Byrnes

Boroondara mayors

List of mayors of Boroondara This is a list of the mayors of the City of Boroondara, a local government area, in Melbourne, Australia. The City of Boroondara was formed in 1994 with the amalgamation of the City of Kew, City of Hawthorn and the City of Camberwell. The mayor ...

Infrastructure

The Council is responsible for the management of stormwater collection and removal. The water supply authority is Yarra Valley Water.

Libraries

The City of Boroondara has five libraries at

, Ashburton,

Balwyn Balwyn () is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 10 km east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Boroondara local government area. Balwyn recorded a population of 13,495 at the 2021 census. White ...

and

, and in 2018 opened a 'library lounge' at the Greythorn Community Hub in

Balwyn North Balwyn North, also known as North Balwyn, is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 10 km east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Boroondara and Whitehorse local government areas. Balwyn North recor ...

Local area

Suburbs

* Ashburton *

(Shared with the

City of Whitehorse The City of Whitehorse is a local government area in Victoria, Australia in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne. It has an area of and in June 2018, Whitehorse had a population of 176,196. Whitehorse was formed in December 1994 by the amalgamat ...

) *

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

* Deepdene *

Glen Iris Glen Iris may refer to: *Glen Iris, Victoria, Australia *Glen Iris, Western Australia A glen is a valley, typically one that is long and bounded by gently sloped concave sides, unlike a ravine, which is deep and bounded by steep slopes. Whit ...

(Shared with the

City of Stonnington The City of Stonnington is a local government area located within the metropolitan area of Melbourne, Australia. It comprises the inner south-eastern suburbs, between , from the Melbourne CBD. The city covers an area of . Within twenty years ...

) *

Hawthorn East Hawthorn East is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east of the Melbourne central business district, located within the City of Boroondara local government area. Hawthorn East recorded a population of 14,834 at the 2021 census. The s ...

Kew East Kew East is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 8 km east from Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the City of Boroondara Local government areas of Victori ...

* Mont Albert (Shared with the

) * Surrey Hills (Shared with the

)

Schools

Boroondara has one of the highest concentrations of students in Australia and contains many private schools, including

Xavier College Xavier College is a Roman Catholic, day and boarding school predominantly for boys, founded in 1872 by the Society of Jesus, with its main campus located in Kew, an eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Classes started in 1878. ...

, Methodist Ladies' College (MLC), Strathcona Baptist Girls' Grammar School,

Camberwell Grammar School , motto_translation = By our deeds may we be known , established = , type = Independent, single sex, Anglican primary and secondary day school , denomination = Anglican , slogan ...

, Trinity Grammar School,

Ruyton Girls' School , motto_translation = Upright and Faithful , established = 1878 , type = Independent, single-sex, day school , denomination = Non-denominational , key_people = , chairman ...

Rossbourne School Rossbourne School is an independent, non denominational, co-educational special school located in Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia, that was founded in 1967. Rossbourne serves students who have had difficulties in mainstream schools due to the dem ...

Carey Baptist Grammar School Carey Baptist Grammar School, commonly known as Carey, is an Independent school, independent and co-educational, Baptists, Baptist day school in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The institution consists of five campuses: Kew, Victoria, ...

, Scotch College, Fintona Girls' School,

Genazzano FCJ College (Faithful) , established = 1889 , type = Independent, day and boarding , years = ELC–12 , gender = Girls , denomination = Catholic ( FCJ Sisters) , sloga ...

Preshil Preshil School, also known as The Margaret Lyttle Memorial School, is an independent progressive co-educational, day school located in Kew, an eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The original Arlington campus houses the Kindergar ...

, and

Alia College Alia College is an independent co-educational alternative secondary school located in Hawthorn East, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia . The school is built around values of tolerance, creativity, self-expression, respect and responsibility. Adv ...

. It contains Catholic schools such as St Michael's Parish School (Ashburton) Our Lady of Good Counsel (Deepdene) and St Bede's School (Balwyn North) and a number of public schools, including

Canterbury Girls' Secondary College Canterbury Girls Secondary College is an all-girls secondary school located in Canterbury, Victoria, Australia. The school provides an education from years 7 to 12. History It was established in 1928 as East Camberwell Domestic Arts School, ...

Balwyn High School Balwyn High School is a state-run high school (years 7–12) in the Melbourne suburb of North Balwyn, in Victoria, Australia. It was established in 1954. As of February 2013, it had 1948 students, making it the fourth largest secondary school ...

Kew High School Kew High School is a co-educational school in suburban Melbourne for students in years 7–12. The school has an enrolment of approximately 1146 students from the suburbs of Kew, Balwyn North, Hawthorn, Ivanhoe, Kew East and Richmond. School g ...

, Auburn High School and

Camberwell High School (Learning to be considerate of others) , city = Canterbury , state = Victoria , country = Australia , coordinates = , type = Public , established ...

References

External links

Official websiteLink to Land Victoria interactive maps
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boroondara, City of Local government areas in Melbourne City of Boroondara