The City of Gold Coast is the local government area spanning the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia and surrounding areas. With a population of 606,774, it is the second most populous local government area in the State of Queensland. Its council maintains a staff of over 2,500. It was established in 1948, but has existed in its present form since 2008. It is on the border with New South Wales with the Tweed Shire to the south in New South Wales.
Southport Pier, 1910
Beach foreshore at Burleigh Heads, 1932
Aerial view looking towards Coolangatta, c. 1952
Beach foreshore at Steiglitz, 2014
Local government in Australia
Local government is the third-level of government in Australia, administered with limited autonomy under the states and territories, and in turn beneath the federal government. Local government is not mentioned in the Constitution of Australia, and two referendums in 1974 and 1988 to alter the Constitution relating to local government were unsuccessful. Every state/territory government recognises local government in its own respective constitution. Unlike the two-tier local government system in Canada or the United States, there is only one tier of local government in each Australian state/territory, with no distinction between counties and cities.
Offices of the Berrigan Shire Council in Berrigan, New South Wales.
Offices of the City of Sydney council, a local government area within Sydney.
Melbourne Town Hall, the offices of the City of Melbourne council.
Offices of the Moreton Bay Regional Council in Caboolture, Queensland.