Tablelands Region

{{For|the re-established local government area taking up most of the original area|Shire of Mareeba}}

{{Infobox Australian place | type = lga

| name = Tablelands Region

| state = qld

| image = Tablelands LGA Qld 2008.png

| image_upright = 0.81

| caption = Location within Queensland, 2013, prior to de-amalgamation of Shire of Mareeba

| mayor = Rodney Donald Marti

| pop = 26244

| pop_year = {{CensusAU|2021}}

| pop_footnotes =

| area = 11293

| area_footnotes = {{cite web|title=3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017-18: Population Estimates by Local Government Area (ASGS 2018), 2017 to 2018 |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3218.02017-18|website=Australian Bureau of Statistics|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=27 March 2019|access-date=25 October 2019}} Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018.

| est = 2008

| seat = Atherton

| region = Far North Queensland

| logo = Tablelands-regional-council-logo.png

| url = https://www.trc.qld.gov.au/

| stategov = Cook

| stategov2 = Barron River

| stategov3 = Hill

| fedgov = Kennedy

| near-nw = Mareeba

| near-n = Mareeba

| near-ne = Cairns

| near-w = Mareeba

| near-e = Cairns

| near-sw = Etheridge

| near-s = Charters Towers

| near-se = Cassowary Coast, Hinchinbrook

}}

The Tablelands Region is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia inland from the city of Cairns. Established in 2008, it was preceded by four previous local government areas which dated back more than a century. On 1 January 2014, one of those local government areas, the Shire of Mareeba, was re-established independent of the Tablelands Region.

It has an estimated operating budget of A$62.2 million.

In the {{CensusAU|2021}}, the Tablelands Region had a population of 26,244 people.

History

Yidinji (also known as Yidinj, Yidiny, and Idindji) is an Australian Aboriginal language. Its traditional language region is within the local government areas of Cairns Region and Tablelands Region, in such localities as Cairns, Gordonvale, and the Mulgrave River, and the southern part of the Atherton Tableland including Atherton and Kairi.{{Cite SLQ-CC-BY|url=https://maps.slq.qld.gov.au/iyil/view/163|title=Yidinji|author=|date=|website=Queensland Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages map|access-date=30 January 2020}}

Prior to the 2008 amalgamation, the Tablelands Region consisted the entire area of four previous local government areas:

On 11 November 1879, when the Divisional Boards Act 1879 came into effect proclaiming 74 divisions around Queensland, the nature and distribution of the population in the Tablelands region was vastly different from today. Most of the area was divided between the Hinchinbrook and Woothakata divisions. On 3 September 1881, Tinaroo Division was proclaimed from part of Hinchinbrook, making the mining towns of Tinaroo and Thornborough the administrative centres of the region.

A number of changes occurred from that point:

15 September 1888 – Formation of the Borough of Herberton to manage the town of Herberton
14 May 1889 – Walsh Division (Irvinebank) separated from Woothakata
20 December 1890 – Barron Division separated from Tinaroo
11 May 1895 – Herberton Division separated from Tinaroo; amalgamated the Borough
31 March 1903 – Under the Local Authorities Act 1902, Barron, Herberton, Tinaroo, Walsh and Woothakata became Shires.
16 December 1908 – Shire of Chillagoe formed from part of Woothakata
18 November 1910 – Shire of Eacham formed from part of Tinaroo
20 December 1919 – Shire of Barron abolished and divided between Mulgrave and Woothakata
1933 – Shires of Walsh and Chillagoe amalgamated into Woothakata
1935 – Shire of Tinaroo renamed Shire of Atherton
20 December 1947 – Shire of Woothakata renamed Shire of Mareeba

In July 2007, the Local Government Reform Commission released its report and recommended that the four areas amalgamate. Amongst its reasons given for this recommendation were that a community of interest revolved around the towns of Mareeba and Atherton, with residents travelling to Cairns for services not offered in the region. The opportunity for tourism and leisure promotion under a single banner, the close proximity of most major towns, the lack of natural barriers and similar economic interests including beef, dairy, fruit and sugar production. All councils opposed the amalgamation, although Atherton, Herberton and Eacham were willing to consider shared service delivery.{{cite book|title=Report of the Local Government Reform Commission|author=Queensland Local Government Reform Commission|volume=2|pages=310–314|isbn=978-1-921057-11-3|date=July 2007|publisher=Local government Reform Commission |url=http://www.dlgp.qld.gov.au/resources/map/reform/tablelands-rationale.pdf|access-date=3 June 2010}} On 15 March 2008, the Shires formally ceased to exist, and elections were held on the same day to elect councillors and a to the Regional Council.

In 2012, a proposal was made to de-amalgamate the Shire of Mareeba from the Tablelands Region.{{cite web|title=Proposal to de-amalgamate Mareeba from the combined Tablelands Regional Council|url=http://www.dlg.qld.gov.au/resources/report/local-government/bc/mareeba-proposal.pdf|access-date=14 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130428114332/http://www.dlg.qld.gov.au/resources/report/local-government/bc/mareeba-proposal.pdf|archive-date=28 April 2013|df=dmy-all}} On 9 March 2013, the citizens of the former Mareeba shire voted in a referendum to de-amalgamate.{{cite web|title=Mareeba Area De-amalgamation Poll – Mareeba – Poll Area Summary|url=http://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/MAREEBA/results/district98.html|publisher=Electoral Commission Queensland|access-date=14 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130512060459/http://ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/MAREEBA/results/district98.html|archive-date=12 May 2013|df=dmy-all}} The Shire of Mareeba was re-established on 1 January 2014.{{cite web|title=De-amalgamation|url=http://www.dsdip.qld.gov.au/bc/|publisher=Queensland Government|access-date=14 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130826155025/http://www.dsdip.qld.gov.au/bc|archive-date=26 August 2013|df=dmy-all}}{{cite web|title=Local Government (De-amalgamation Implementation) Regulation 2013|url=https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/LEGISLTN/CURRENT/L/LocalGovDeamallmpR13.pdf|work=Local Government Act 2009|publisher=Queensland Government|access-date=14 August 2013}}

Wards and councillors

Tablelands Regional Council consists of:{{When|date=June 2024}}{{Cite web|date=2020|title=2020 Local Government Elections: Saturday, 28 March 2020|url=https://prodresults.elections.qld.gov.au/lga2020|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200616100501/https://prodresults.elections.qld.gov.au/lga2020|archive-date=16 June 2020|access-date=16 June 2020|publisher=Electoral Commission of Queensland}}

Mayor: Rodney Donald (Rod) Marti
Division 1 Councillor: Kevin Cardew
Division 2 Councillor: Annette Haydon
Division 3 Councillor: Dave Bilney
Division 4 Councillor: David Clifton
Division 5 Councillor: Peter Hodge
Division 6 Councillor: Bernie Wilce

Mayors

2008–2012: Tom Gilmore{{Cite web|url=http://results.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/LG2008/TablelandsRegionalCouncil/results/mayoral/summary.html|title=2008 Tablelands Regional Council - Mayoral Election - Election Summary|website=results.ecq.qld.gov.au|access-date=2017-12-04}}
2012–2016: Rosa Lee Long{{Cite web|url=http://results.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/LG2012/TablelandsRegionalCouncil/results/mayoral/summary.html|title=2012 Tablelands Regional Council - Mayoral Election - Election Summary|website=results.ecq.qld.gov.au|access-date=2017-12-04}}
2016–2020: Joe Paronella{{Cite web|url=http://results.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/local/LG2016/TablelandsRegionalCouncil/results/mayoral/summary.html|title=2016 Tablelands Regional Council - Mayoral Election - Election Summary|website=results.ecq.qld.gov.au|access-date=2017-12-04}}
2020–present: Rod Marti

Towns and localities

The Tablelands Region includes the following settlements:

Atherton area:

Eacham area:

Herberton area:

Others:

¹ - shared with Cassowary Coast Region

² - shared with Cairns Region and Cassowary Coast Region

Demographics

The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008. The {{CensusAU|2011}} was the first for the Tablelands Region.

Year ! Population (Region total) ! Population (Mareeba) ! Population (Atherton) ! Population (Herberton) ! Population (Eacham) ! Notes
class="wikitable" style="text-align:right;"
1933	19,386	8,248	3,962	2,852	4,324	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1947	17,585	6,312	4,335	3,198	3,740	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1954	20,917	7,595	5,401	4,150	3,771	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1961	23,675	10,212	5,806	3,815	3,842	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1966	23,332	10,789	5,311	3,634	3,598	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1971	24,367	11,676	5,638	3,726	3,327	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1976	25,488	12,136	6,240	3,679	3,433	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1981	29,329	14,003	7,501	3,688	4,137	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1986	33,426	15,563	8,518	4,210	5,135	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1991	36,816	17,129	9,518	4,560	5,609	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
1996	39,350	18,044	10,119	5,113	6,074	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
2001	39,629	17,961	10,509	5,083	6,076	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
2006	40,906	18,212	10,912	5,423	6,359	{{citation needed\|date=June 2024}}
{{CensusAU\|2011}}	43,727	colspan=5 style="text-align: left;" \|{{Census 2011 AUS\|id=LGA36810\|name=Tablelands Region (LGA)\|access-date=22 June 2024\|quick=on}}
{{CensusAU\|2016}}	24,827	colspan=5 style="text-align: left;" \|Following the deamalgation of the Shire of Mareeba.{{Census 2016 AUS\|id=LGA36820\|name=Tablelands Region (LGA)\|access-date=20 October 2018\|quick=on}}
{{CensusAU\|2021}}	26,244	colspan=5 style="text-align: left;" \|{{Census 2021 AUS\|id=LGA36820\|name=Tablelands Region (LGA)\|access-date=28 February 2023\|quick=on}}

Libraries

The Tablelands Regional Council operate public libraries in Atherton, Herberton, Malanda, Millaa Millaa, Mount Garnet, Ravenshoe and Yungaburra.{{Cite web|url=http://plconnect.slq.qld.gov.au/networking/directory-of-public-libraries/services/tablelands|title=Tablelands Regional Council|date=29 September 2017|website=Public Libraries Connect|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180205054713/http://plconnect.slq.qld.gov.au/networking/directory-of-public-libraries/services/tablelands|archive-date=5 February 2018|url-status=live|access-date=5 February 2018}}

References

{{Coord|16|59|48|S|145|23|59|E|type:adm2nd_region:AU-QLD|display=title}}

Tablelands

Category:Far North Queensland

Category:2008 establishments in Australia