Goulburn Mulwaree Council 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 ...

located in the Southern Tablelands region of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. The area is located adjacent to the

Hume Highway Hume Highway, inclusive of the sections now known as Hume Freeway and Hume Motorway, is one of Australia's major inter-city national highways, running for between Melbourne in the southwest and Sydney in the northeast. Upgrading of the route f ...

and the Southern Highlands railway line. The estimated resident population of the area stood at 29,609 on . The

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Goulburn Mulwaree Council is Peter Walker.

Cities, towns and localities

The area covered under administration is and includes

Goulburn Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...

and the towns and localities of: Parts of the Southern Highlands, the Southern Tablelands and Morton National Park lie within the Goulburn Mulwaree Council area.

History

The oldest habitation sites discovered in the region date back more than 3000–5000 years ago. Two distinct aboriginal language groups were identified in the region when the Europeans initiated contact. These were the Gundungurra and the Ngunnawal groups which were connected through common beliefs and culture. These groups are the Traditional Owners of the Goulburn Mulwaree Local Government Area and the area is proud to be a meeting place of the two groups, with the Gundungurra to the north and the Ngunnawal to the south. Muniwarung is ‘Meeting Place’ in the Gundungurra language. The first Europeans to visit Goulburn Mulwaree were John Wilson and John Price. Properties were established here during 1817-1820 due to the grazing potential of the Southern Tablelands.

Municipal history

The council was formed as the Greater Argyle Council in 2004 as an amalgamation of Goulburn City and parts of the former Mulwaree Shire. It was renamed in 2005 following objections from the community.

Controversies

During 2011 - 2013, Goulburn Mulwaree Council has been at the centre of alleged breaches of NSW Council Rules and Regulations. In late 2013, a Government investigation by the New South Wales State Government found that the Goulburn Mulwaree Council's Multi-Use Centre Tendering Process breached established State Regulations, ruling that: " oulburn MulwareeCouncil contravened regulations, ignored tendering guidelines and offered unfair advantage to two tenderers including the successful tenderer, Bathurst firm, Hines Constructions." The Investigation prompted multiple Council Internal Reform suggestions, as well as prompting the council's General Manager Performance Review Committee to suspend the automatic employment renewal of Mr Chris Berry, the then General Manager of Goulburn Mulwaree Council, in September 2013. In 2011, Goulburn Mulwaree Council partnered with

Veolia Environmental Services Veolia Environmental Services (in French Veolia Propreté), formerly Onyx Environnement, is a division of Veolia Environnement. It employs nearly 78,000 staff, has operations in 35 countries around the world, and generated revenues of nearly €9 ...

in seed funding to make up $10,000 for an art award through the Goulburn Regional Art Gallery. The Award, known as the Veolia Environmental Services Art Award, prompted condemnation from the peak body for Australian visual and media arts ( The National Association for Visual Artists or NAVA), as well as an independent investigation after multiple complaints alleging the winning entry breached the stipulated entry conditions. The Investigation, completed by ''Planning, Environmental and Economic Consulting'', resulted in a 22-page report where: "The consultant recommended that Council make a public statement to acknowledge grievances and the necessary improvements. Secondly, gallery staff should be proactive in engaging professionals, galleries and judges to develop and benchmark the entry and judging criteria." Veolia Environmental Services discontinued its annual $10,000 support for the Award in 2012.

Council

Current composition and election method

Goulburn Mulwaree Council is composed of nine

Councillor A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries. Canada Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...

s elected proportionally as one entire ward. All Councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The

is elected by the Councillors at the first meeting of the council. The most recent election was held on 10 September 2016, and the makeup of the council is as follows: The current Council, elected in 2016, in order of election, is:

References

{{Authority control Local government areas of New South Wales Southern Tablelands