Idalia is a southern

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

in the

City of Townsville The City of Townsville is a local government area (LGA) located in North Queensland, Australia. It encompasses the city of Townsville, together with the surrounding rural areas. To the south are the communities of Alligator Creek, Woodstock a ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, Australia. In the , Idalia had a population of 4,563 people.

Geography

Idalia is bounded by the North Coast railway line to the east, the median strip of Racecourse Road to the south, the median strip of Stuart Drive to the south-west, and by the Ross River to the north-west. The

Bruce Highway The Bruce Highway is a major highway in Queensland, Australia. Commencing in the state capital, Brisbane, it passes through areas close to the eastern coast on its way to Cairns in Far North Queensland. The route is part of the Australian Natio ...

runs along the southern boundary,

Townsville Connection Road Townsville road network is a group of roads that provide access to the urban areas of Townsville in Queensland, Australia, and enable travel between the communities. Most of the roads retain their original road or street names, and are not well kn ...

along the westhern boundary, and

South Townsville Road Townsville road network is a group of roads that provide access to the urban areas of Townsville in Queensland, Australia, and enable travel between the communities. Most of the roads retain their original road or street names, and are not well kn ...

along the eastern. There are three saltwater lakes in Idalia, created as part of the Fairfield Waters subdivision to manage excess water during the wet season. Idalia is situated between the suburbs of Annandale,

Oonoonba Oonoonba is a suburb of Townsville in the City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. In the , Oonoonba had a population of 2,050 people. Geography Oonoonba is approximately by road south from Townsville central business district. The subu ...

, Cluden and Wulguru. Quealban is a neighbourhood () around the former Quealban railway station () on the North Coast railway line. Two other abandoned railway stations on that line in the suburb are: * Oonoonba railway station () * Cluden railway station ()

History

The name ''Quealban'' was assigned by the

Queensland Railways Department Queensland Rail (QR) is a railway operator in Queensland, Australia. Queensland Rail is owned by the Queensland Government, and operates both suburban and interurban rail services in South East Queensland, as well as long-distance passenger t ...

on 22 May 1914 and is an Aboriginal word meaning ''

curlew The curlews () are a group of nine species of birds in the genus ''Numenius'', characterised by their long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. The English name is imitative of the Eurasian curlew's call, but may have been infl ...

''. Oonoonba State School opened on 15 November 1920. Idalia was once a light-industrial suburb of the city, but in recent years, with the initiation of the Fairfield Waters subdivision development, the suburb has rapidly expanded (in terms of establishments) and nearly tripled in size. The suburb was significantly impacted by the

2019 Townsville flood Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number) * One of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (1987 film), a 1987 science fiction film * '' 19-Nineteen'', a 2009 South Korean film * '' Dici ...

with a majority of residential and commercial properties inundated to some extent. The velodrome was damaged and received a $2 million grant to replace it.

Demographics

In the , Idalia had a population of 4,438 people. In the , Idalia had a population of 4,563 people.

Heritage listings

Idalia has a number of

heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and human-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In ma ...

sites, including: * Stuart Drive ():

Ross River Meatworks Chimney The Ross River Meatworks Chimney is a heritage-listed abattoir at Stuart Drive, Idalia, Queensland, Idalia, City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. It is the 11th tallest structure in Townsville. It was built as part of the Ross River Meatwor ...

Education

Oonoonba State School during the 2019 Townsville flood

Oonoonba State School is a government primary (Prep–6) school for boys and girls at Fairfield Waters Drive (). In 2017 the school had an enrolment of 524 students with 46 teachers (38 full-time equivalent) and 30 non-teaching staff (17 full-time equivalent). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 501 students with 40 teachers (34 full-time equivalent) and 27 non-teaching staff (16 full-time equivalent). It includes a

special education Special education (also known as special-needs education, aided education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, and SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates their individual di ...

program. There are no secondary schools in Idalia. The nearest secondary school is

William Ross State High School William Ross State High School is an independent public high school situated in the Townsville Suburb of Annandale, North Queensland. William Ross has a student count from grades 7 through to 12 of close to 905 (as of 2020) students which cont ...

in neighbouring Annandale to the south-east.

Amenities

Fairfield Central shopping centre is at corner of Waterfront Parade and Lakeside Drive (). Townsville Velodrome is a sports cycling centre at 46-92 Stuart Drive (). It has a banked velodrome and is operated by the Townsville Cycle Club. Townsville District Pony Club operates from Pony Club Reserve at 92 Stuart Drive (). There are a number of parks in the area: * Lakeshore Circuit park () * Gordon Creek park at 94-194 Stuart Drive () * Edgewater Circuit park ()

References

External links

* {{Suburbs of Townsville Suburbs of Townsville