The Fraser Coast Region is a

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a federated state, state, province, division (politica ...

in the

Wide Bay–Burnett Wide Bay–Burnett is a region of the Australian state of Queensland, located between north of the state capital, Brisbane. The area's population growth has exceeded the state average over the past 20 years, and it is forecast to grow to more ...

region of

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, about north of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, the state capital. It is centred on the twin cities of

Hervey Bay Hervey Bay () is a city on the coast of the Fraser Coast Region of Queensland, Australia. The city is situated approximately or 3½ hours' highway drive north of the state capital, Brisbane. It is located on the bay of the same name open to ...

and Maryborough and also contains K'gari. It was created in 2008 from a merger of the Cities of Maryborough and

and the Shires of Woocoo and most of

Tiaro Tiaro ( ) is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Fraser Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Tiaro had a population of 778 people. Geography The town is on the Mary River (Queensland), ...

. The resident population at the was 111,032 and the estimated population in 2023 was 117,940. The 2024-2025 budget of the Fraser Coast Regional Council is $477 million. Eli creek fraser island

History

Butchulla (also known as Batjala, Badtjala, Badjela and Badjala) is the language of the Fraser Coast region, including K'gari. Butchulla language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the Fraser Coast Regional Council, particularly the towns of Maryborough and

extending south towards

Noosa The Shire of Noosa () is a local government area about north of Brisbane in the Sunshine Coast district of South East Queensland, Australia. The shire covers an area of . It existed as a local government entity from 1910 until 2008, when it w ...

and northwest to

Howard Howard is a masculine given name derived from the English surname Howard. ''The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names'' notes that "the use of this surname as a christian name is quite recent and there seems to be no particular reason for ...

. On 10 March 1861, the Municipal Borough of Maryborough, governed under the ''Municipalities Act 1858'' which had been inherited from

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

upon the

separation of Queensland The Separation of Queensland was an event in 1859 in which the land that forms the present-day state of Queensland in Australia was excised from the Colony of New South Wales and proclaimed as a separate crown colony. History European settlemen ...

in 1859, was proclaimed, becoming the sixth municipal government in Queensland. Henry Palmer was appointed as its first Mayor. On 11 November 1879, when the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879'' came into effect, the

Antigua Antigua ( ; ), also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the local population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua ...

and Burrum Divisions were created around what is now Hervey Bay, and on 15 September 1883, the Granville Division was established to serve the district surrounding Maryborough. Howard Division was separated from the Isis Division in 1900. With the passage of the ''Local Authorities Act 1902'', all four divisions became Shires on 31 March 1903, and Maryborough became a Town. On 7 January 1905, Maryborough achieved City status, and a Town Hall was built on the corner of Kent and Adelaide Streets and became the administrative centre of the City. The Shire of Degilbo, later renamed Biggenden, split away from the

Shire of Burrum Shire () is a traditional term for an administrative division of land in Great Britain and some other English-speaking countries. It is generally synonymous with county (such as Cheshire and Worcestershire). British counties are among the oldes ...

on 3 June 1905. On 23 December 1905, Burrum was renamed Pialba. On 17 February 1917, the Granville, Antigua and Pialba shires were dissolved, and split between a new

and the Shire of Woocoo, which had been gazetted three years earlier. By the 1920s the Hervey Bay area was rapidly expanding due to continuing growth in the primary industries such as sugar cane, citrus, pineapples, beef cattle and fishing, as well as investment in transport infrastructure. In the 1950s and 1960s, population and development increased, and the coastal towns slowly merged into a single urban area. On 20 December 1975, but effective from 27 March 1976 local government elections, the Shire of Burrum was renamed the Shire of Hervey Bay. With the new focus on the coastal region, of its area, with an estimated population of 1,119, was annexed by the City of Maryborough, while with an estimated population of 2,629 was annexed by the Shire of Woocoo. In September 1977, the Shire of Hervey Bay received Town status, and on 18 February 1984 it became a City. The ''Local Government (Maryborough and Woocoo) Regulation 1993'', which took effect on 31 March 1994, effected the City's annexation of about of the Shire of Woocoo. At this time, Maryborough was resubdivided into eight divisions each with one councillor, plus an elected mayor. On 15 March 2008, under the ''Local Government (Reform Implementation) Act 2007'' passed by the

Parliament of Queensland The Parliament of Queensland is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature, legislative body of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland. As provided under the Constitution of Queensland, the Parliament consists o ...

on 10 August 2007, the

City of Hervey Bay The City of Hervey Bay was a Local government in Australia, local government area located in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, containing the urban centre of Hervey Bay as well as the northern half of Fraser Island. The Cit ...

merged with the City of Maryborough, Shire of Woocoo and the northern part of

(Divisions 1 and 2) to form the Fraser Coast Region. SeawallUranganQLD

Divisions

The council consists of ten councillors and a mayor, elected for a four-year term. Each of the councillors represent one of the ten divisions. The next election is due in March 2028.

Towns and localities

The Fraser Coast Region includes the following settlements: Urban

: * Booral * Bunya Creek *

Craignish Craignish (Scottish Gaelic, ''Creiginis'') is a peninsula in Argyll and Bute, on the west coast of Scotland. It lies around south of Oban, and north-west of Lochgilphead. The peninsula is around long, and is aligned along a north-east to ...

* Dundowran * Dundowran Beach * Eli Waters * Kawungan * Nikenbah *

Pialba Pialba is a coastal town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), suburb of Hervey Bay in the Fraser Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. It is the central business district of Hervey Bay. In the , the suburb of Pialba had a population of 4,151 ...

* Point Vernon * Scarness * Sunshine Acres * Susan River * Takura * Toogoom *

Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignt ...

* Urangan * Urraween * Walligan * Wondunna Rural

: * Beelbi Creek * Burgowan * Burrum * Burrum Heads * Burrum River * Burrum Town * Cherwell * Dundathu *

* Pacific Haven * River Heads * Torbanlea * Walliebum Maryborough area: * Maryborough ** Granville ** Island Plantation ** Maryborough West *

Aldershot Aldershot ( ) is a town in the Rushmoor district, Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme north-east corner of the county, south-west of London. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Farnborough/Aldershot built-up are ...

* Beaver Rock * Bidwill * Boonooroo * Boonooroo Plains * Duckinwilla * Eurong (

Fraser Island K'gari ( , ), also known by its former name Fraser Island, is a World Heritage-listed sand island along the south-eastern coast in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia. The island lies approximately north of the state capi ...

) * Ferney * Glenorchy * Great Sandy Strait * Maaroom *

Poona Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

* Poona National Park * St Helens *

Teddington Teddington is an affluent suburb of London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Historically an Civil parish#ancient parishes, ancient parish in the county of Middlesex and situated close to the border with Surrey, the district became ...

* The Dimonds * Tinana * Tuan * Tuan Forest * Walkers Point Woocoo area: *

* Aramara * Bidwill * Boompa * Brooweena * Dunmora * Grahams Creek * Mungar * Oakhurst * Owanyilla * Tinana South * Woocoo * Yengarie * Yerra North Tiaro - Division 1 area: *

* Blackmount * Pioneers Rest *

St Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under various titles such as virgin or queen, many of them mentioned in the Litany of Loreto. ...

* Thinoomba North Tiaro - Division 2 area: * Bauple * Bauple Forest * Glenbar * Glenwood * Gootchie * Gundiah * Kanigan * Mount Urah * Munna Creek * Neerdie * Netherby * Paterson * Talegalla Weir * Tin Can Bay¹ * Tinnanbar ¹ - split with

Gympie Region The Gympie Region is a Local government in Australia, local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is between the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sunshine Coast and ...

Libraries

The Fraser Coast Regional Council operates public libraries at Burrum Heads,

(Hervey Bay),

, Maryborough (John Anderson), Maryborough (Toys and Special Needs), and

(Tom Gee Memorial). A new library is being constructed at Hervey Bay as part of the Hinkler Regional Deal.

Heritage register

The Fraser Coast Regional Council maintains a local heritage register of significant sites in the Region.

Demographics

The populations given relate to the component entities prior to 2008. The 2011 census was the first for the new Region.

Current Councillors/Mayor

The current mayor of the Fraser Coast Regional Council is George Seymour (Australian Politician), George Seymour, who was elected in a by-election held in May 2018 and re-elected in 2020 and 2024. The by-election followed the dismissal of Chris Loft as Mayor on 16 February 2018 by the Minister for Local Government, Stirling Hinchliffe who alleged Mr Loft made "serial breaches of the Local Government principles outlined in the Local Government Act." The deputy mayor is elected from the ten councillors. As at 2025, the councillors are * Division 1 - Cr Michelle Byrne * Division 2 - Cr Phil Truscott * Division 3 - Cr Paul Truscott * Division 4 - Cr Daniel Sanderson * Division 5 - Cr Michelle Govers * Division 6 - Cr Lachlan Cosgrove * Division 7 - Cr John Weiland * Division 8 - Cr Denis Chapman * Division 9 - Cr Sara Faraj (Deputy Mayor) * Division 10 - Cr Zane O'Keefe

List of mayors

The first mayor, Mick Kruger, had served on the Hervey Bay City Council prior to the amalgamation in 2008 and the second mayor, Gerard O'Connell, had served on the Maryborough City Council prior to the amalgamation. The current mayor, George Seymour, is the only incumbent mayor to be re-elected on the Fraser Coast Regional Council. * 2008–2012: Mick Kruger * 2012–2016: Gerard Daniel O'Connell * 2016–2018 (dismissed): Chris Loft * 2018–present: George Seymour (Australian Politician), George Seymour

References

External links

Fraser Coast Regional Council WebsiteLocal Government & Municipal Knowledge Base – Fraser Coast Regional Council Page
{{coord, 25, 17, 28.5, S, 152, 49, 51.3, E, type:adm2nd_region:AU-QLD, display=title Fraser Coast Region, Local government areas of Queensland Wide Bay–Burnett 2008 establishments in Australia