City of Melton

The City of Melton is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, on Melbourne's western rural–urban fringe.

It covers Template:Convert, and as of the Template:Census AU, Melton had a population of 178,960.<ref name=ABSLGA/>

It is governed by the Melton City Council. The seat of local government and administrative offices are located at Council headquarters in Melton, the settlement after which the city takes its name which lies at the western end of the LGA and is currently its largest urban area with a population of over 54,000.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

City of Melton has a rapid population growth rate, ranked 3rd fastest among LGAs in Victoria in 2010.<ref>Template:Cite web </ref> It was granted city status in 2012.<ref name=":0" />

History

File:MeltonCivicCentre.JPG

Civic centre

Melton was first incorporated as a district on 16 September 1862, and became a shire on 24 May 1871. Parts of the north and south ridings of the Shire of Braybrook (later City of Sunshine) were annexed to Melton as the Rockbank Riding on 24 May 1916, and this was added to in 1951. Other minor boundary adjustments with Bulla and Keilor occurred in May 1959. The Shire had a total area of Template:Convert.<ref name=vmd>Template:Cite book Accessed at State Library of Victoria, La Trobe Reading Room.</ref>

In 1994, following large-scale statewide local government reform, Melton acquired the Exford district from the City of Werribee, growing to its present size.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Since the early 1970s the Shire had undergone tremendous population growth and Template:As of, Melton was one of Victoria's fastest-growing local government areas along with neighbouring Wyndham.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

After several years of community consultation to defer applying for city status until it had reached 150,000,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the council nevertheless reversed the decision and city status was granted in September, 2012.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> The first elected Mayor under the 'City" status was Kathy Majdlik.Template:Citation needed

In the 2020 Local Government elections, Melton had its first Aboriginal Councillor elected, Cr Ashleigh Vandenberg, (a Wiradjuri woman, the first Aboriginal Councillor in Melbourne's Western Suburbs).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Art and culture

Bush ballad "Click Go the Shears" was first published in 1891 in a local newspaper by "C.C. of Eynesbury".<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Eynesbury was a homestead and grazing property owned by Samuel Staughton.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

CS Gallery is a contemporary exhibition space located at Caroline Springs Library and Learning Hub. It provides opportunities for artists and groups to exhibit and does not charge fees or commission. Melton Library and Learning Hub provides a number of hanging walls for the presentation of visual art and community exhibitions.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Administration

File:MeltonShireOffices.JPG

Melton City Council offices

Council

Template:Victoria LGA ward map The City's area is divided into ten wards, each electing a single member. The Councillors elect a mayor from among the council's members.

Following the 2024 local election, the current councillors are:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Ward	Party		Councillor	Notes
Bullum Bullum	Template:Australian party style|	Independent Labor	Steve Abboushi	Mayor
Cambrian	Template:Australian party style|	Independent	Bob Turner
Coolibah	Template:Australian party style|	Independent	Brandi Morris
Hilltop	Template:Australian party style|	Independent Labor	John Verdon
Jackwood	Template:Australian party style|	Independent Labor	Ashleigh Vandenberg
Lake Caroline	Template:Australian party style|	Independent	Kathy Majdlik
Mount Atkinson	Template:Australian party style|	Independent Labor	Phillip Zada
Stringybark	Template:Australian party style|	Independent Liberal	Julie Shannon
Sugar Gum	Template:Australian party style|	Independent Labor	Lara Carli	Deputy Mayor
Watts	Template:Australian party style|	Independent	Sophie Ramsey

Townships and localities

The city had a population of 178,960 at the 2021 census, up from 135,443 recorded at the 2016 census.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Population
Locality	2016	2021
Template:VICcity	*	7,982
Template:VICcity	*	333
Template:VICcity	9,216	10,782
Template:VICcity	4,751	5,800
Template:VICcity	6,072	6,377
Template:VICcity	24,205	24,488
Template:VICcity	*	3,601
Template:VICcity	*	654
Template:VICcity^	2,763	5,669
Template:VICcity	107	133
Template:VICcity^	2,577	2,838
Template:VICcity	*	#
Template:VICcity	*	9,097
Template:VICcity	*	132
Template:VICcity	*	12,463
Template:VICcity^	193	290
Template:VICcity	10,070	10,711
Template:VICcity	8,069	7,953
Template:VICcity	11,517	11,362
Template:VICcity	17,589	8,784
Template:VICcity^	569	496
Template:VICcity^	170	188
Template:VICcity	4,324	79
Template:VICcity	1,157	2,295
Template:VICcity	1,536	2,583
Template:VICcity	*	3,997
Template:VICcity	14,921	15,419
Template:VICcity	*	3,066
Template:VICcity^	724	818
Template:VICcity^	20,687	36,305
Template:VICcity	*	4,398

^ - Territory divided with another LGA
* - Not noted in 2016 Census
# - Not noted in 2021 Census

Population

Year	Population	Annual Growth (%)
1954	1,424	N/A
1958	1,580<ref name="vicyearbook">1958, 1983 and 1988 Victorian Year Book</ref>	2.63
1961	1,804<ref name="vicyearbook"/>	4.52
1966	2,542<ref name="vicyearbook"/>	7.10
1971	5,974<ref name="vicyearbook"/>	18.64
1976	13,856<ref name="vicyearbook"/>	18.32
1981	21,300<ref name="vicyearbook"/>	8.98
1986	29,500	6.73
1991	35,695	3.89
1996	39,109	1.84
2001	51,685	5.73
2006	78,448<ref name="census2011">Template:Census 2006 AUS</ref>	8.70
2011	109,259<ref name="census2011"/>	7.86
2016	135,443
2021	178,960

Residential estates

Recent large housing projects include:

• Atherstone, within the new suburbs of Cobblebank and Strathtulloh. ($1.2 billion).Template:Citation needed
• Eynesbury Township.
• Waterford Estate, in the suburb of Weir Views.
• Woodlea, within the new suburb of Aintree.
• Seventh Bend, within the new suburb of Weir Views.

See also

• List of places on the Victorian Heritage Register in the City of Melton

External links

• Template:Commonscat-inline
• Melton City Council home page
• Public Transport Victoria local public transport map
• Link to Land Victoria interactive maps Template:Webarchive
• Template:Victorian local government areas pre-1994 vs present map link