City of Lismore

Lismore City New South Wales
Location in NSW
Coordinates	28°49′S 153°17′E / 28.817°S 153.283°E / -28.817; 153.283Coordinates: 28°49′S 153°17′E / 28.817°S 153.283°E / -28.817; 153.283
Population	44,741 (2015 est)[1]
• Density	34.68/km2 (89.8/sq mi)
Established	1879 (municipality): 9 September 1946 (1946-09-09) (city)[2]
Area	1,290 km2 (498.1 sq mi)[3]
Mayor	Issac Smith (Country Labor)
Council seat	Goonellabah
Region	Northern Rivers
State electorate(s)	Lismore
Federal Division(s)	Page
Website	Lismore City
LGAs around Lismore City: Kyogle Tweed Byron Richmond Valley Lismore City Ballina Richmond Valley Richmond Valley Ballina

The City of Lismore is a local government area in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. The seat of the local government area is Lismore, a major regional centre of the state.

The Mayor of Lismore City Council is Cr. Issac Smith, a member of Country Labor.

Towns and localities

Lismore suburban

Other areas

Demographics

At the 2011 census, there were 42,766 people in the Lismore local government area, of these 48.9 per cent were male and 51.1 per cent were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 4.5 per cent of the population, which was significantly higher than the national and state averages of 2.5 per cent. The median age of people in the City of Lismore area was 40 years, which was marginally higher than the national median of 37 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 19.7 per cent of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 14.7 per cent of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 42.8 per cent were married and 14.5 per cent were either divorced or separated.^[4]

Population growth in the City of Lismore area between the 2001 census and the 2006 census was 1.5 per cent; and in the subsequent five years to the 2011 census, the population growth was 1.3 per cent. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78 per cent and 8.32 per cent respectively, population growth in the Lismore local government area was significantly lower than the national average.^[5][6] The median weekly income for residents within the City of Lismore area was marginally lower than the national average.^[4]

At the 2011 census, the proportion of residents in the Lismore local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Saxon exceeded 83 per cent of all residents (national average was 65.2 per cent). In excess of 24 per cent of all residents in the City of Lismore at the 2011 census nominated no religious affiliation, compared to the national average of 22.3 per cent. Meanwhile, affiliation with Christianity was 55 per cent, which was slightly higher than the national average of 50.2 per cent. As at the census date, compared to the national average, households in the Lismore local government area had a significantly lower than average proportion (3.5 per cent) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4 per cent); and a significantly higher proportion (92.9 per cent) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8 per cent).^[4]

Selected historical census data for the City of Lismore local government area
Census year			2001[5]	2006[6]	2011[4]
Population		Estimated residents on Census night	41,572	42,210	42,766
		LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales			48
		% of New South Wales population			0.62%
		% of Australian population	0.22%	0.22%	0.20%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		Australian			31.4%
		English			30.0%
		Irish			10.8%
		Scottish			8.2%
		German			3.5%
Language, top responses (other than English)		Italian	0.2%	0.9%	0.9%
		German	0.6%	0.4%	0.5%
		Mandarin	n/c	n/c	0.2%
		French	0.1%	0.1%	0.2%
		Auslan	n/c	0.1%	0.2%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		No Religion	15.2%	19.3%	24.8%
		Catholic	25.8%	25.5%	24.5%
		Anglican	21.9%	20.7%	18.7%
		Uniting Church	7.8%	7.3%	6.2%
		Presbyterian and Reformed	6.4%	6.2%	5.6%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income		A$378	A$469
		% of Australian median income		81.1%	81.3%
Family income		Median weekly family income		A$993	A$1,123
		% of Australian median income		84.8%	75.8%
Household income		Median weekly household income		A$760	A$907
		% of Australian median income		74.0%	73.5%

Council

Current composition and election method

Lismore City Council is composed of eleven Councillors, including the Mayor, for a fixed four-year term of office. The Mayor is directly elected while the ten other Councillors are elected proportionally as one entire ward. The most recent election was held on 10 September 2016, and the makeup of the Council, including the Mayor, is as follows:^[7][8]

The current Council, elected in 2016, in order of election, is:

Sister cities

Lismore has sister city relations with the following cities:^[9]

• Yamatotakada, Japan, since 1963
• Lismore, Ireland, since 2000
• Eau Claire, Wisconsin, USA, since 2001
• Makassar, Indonesia

References