Alexander Fong Lim AM (鄺鴻銓, 18 February 1931 – 3 September 1990) was the eleventh Lord Mayor of the

City of Darwin The City of Darwin is a local government area of the Northern Territory, Australia. It includes the central business district of the capital, Darwin City, and represents two-thirds of its metropolitan population. The City covers an area of ...

, the capital city of the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Au ...

of Australia. He served as Lord Mayor from 1 June 1984 to 9 August 1990. Notably he was also the first

Chinese Australian Chinese Australians () are Australians of Chinese ancestry. Chinese Australians are one of the largest groups within the global Chinese diaspora, and are the largest Asian Australian community. Per capita, Australia has more people of Chines ...

Lord Mayor and was awarded the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Go ...

in 1986 for services to the community and local government.

Biography

Born 18 February 1931 in

Katherine Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Christ ...

, Alec Fong Lim was the sixth of nine children of George and Lorna Fong Lim. Both George and Lorna Fong Lim were born in Australia and the family spent Alec Fong Lim's early years in Katherine where his father was a tailor, ran a general store and owned a peanut farm. When Alec Fong Lim was seven the family relocated to Darwin to run several businesses. During the war years the family was evacuated to

Alice Springs Alice Springs ( aer, Mparntwe) is the third-largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Known as Stuart until 31 August 1933, the name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William Whitfield Mills after Alice, Lady Todd (''née'' Al ...

and Alec Fong Lim attended Scotch College in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater A ...

, South Australia. Following the war the family moved back to Darwin to resume their businesses, which eventually included the Vic Hotel. Alec Fong Lim worked in the hotel until it was sold in 1965. In the early 1970s, the family also owned and operated the legendary Lim's Hotel in Rapid Creek. Following the sale of the original Vic Hotel, Alec Fong Lim owned and ran a fine wine and food wholesale business located in the Parap Shopping center and invested in several other local businesses. His was also a popular course bookmaker at the Fannie Bay race course. He died on 3 September 1990 shortly after resigning from the office of Lord Mayor. He was succeeded as Lord Mayor by Alan Markham. Alec Fong Lim and his wife Norma Fong Lim had six daughters. His daughter, Katrina Fong Lim, was elected Lord Mayor of the City of Darwin in 2012.

Posthumous honours

On 25 September 1990 a motion of condolence was issued in the Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory and in recognition of his dedication to the people of Darwin, Lake Alexander, a man-made lake, was named for him when it was opened on 21 July 1991. The road leading to the lake was also renamed Alec Fong Lim Drive. In 2008 the

Electoral division of Fong Lim Fong Lim is an electoral division of the Legislative Assembly in Australia's Northern Territory. The district is named after Alec Fong Lim, Lord Mayor of Darwin from 1984 to 1990. There were 5,555 people enrolled in the division in August 2020 ...

was also named in his honour.

Community service

Positions held included: *Founding member of the local Apex club *Chairman of the St John Council *Vice President of the NT Spastics Association *Chairman of the

National Australia Day Council The National Australia Day Council (NADC) is a non-profit social enterprise owned by the Australian Government and is the national coordinating body for the Australian of the Year awards and Australia Day. It was established in 1979 and inco ...

NT Inc *Trustee of the

Cyclone Tracy Cyclone Tracy was a tropical cyclone that devastated the city of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, from 24 to 26 December 1974. The small, developing easterly storm had been observed passing clear of the city initially, but then turned t ...

Fund *Member of the NT Australia Bicentennial Committee

Notes

References

*''Darwin City Council 50 years'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Fong Lim, Alec 1931 births 1990 deaths Australian politicians of Chinese descent Mayors and Lord Mayors of Darwin Members of the Order of Australia People educated at Scotch College, Adelaide 20th-century Australian politicians