City of Yarra
The City of Yarra is a local government area in Victoria, Australia in the inner eastern and northern suburbs of Melbourne. It is the second smallest LGA in the state with an area of, and in June 2018 it had a population of 98,521, making it the second most densely populated LGA, with around 5,040 people per square kilometre. The City of Yarra was formed in 1994 as a result of the amalgamation of the former Cities of Richmond, Collingwood, Fitzroy, and parts of Carlton North and parts of Alphington and Fairfield.
The administrative centre of the City of Yarra is the old Richmond Town Hall in Bridge Road, Richmond. The Collingwood Town Hall in Hoddle Street, Abbotsford is also still used by the council as secondary offices and as a service centre, and the Fitzroy Town Hall in Napier Street, Fitzroy is used for the local library and for use as a community space. Some council committees also meet at the Fitzroy and Collingwood Town Halls.
The city is culturally and socially diverse. The 2016 Australian Census found that 38.8% of residents were born outside Australia, with the largest numbers being born in England, New Zealand, Vietnam, China and Greece.
The suburbs of the City of Yarra were established in the mid-to-late 19th century and retain a Victorian appearance. The majority of housing in the city is made up of Victorian cottages or terraces or apartments built from the 1960s.
The City of Yarra has some of Melbourne's best shopping streets. These include Bridge Road and Swan and Victoria Streets in Richmond, Brunswick and Gertrude streets in Fitzroy and Smith Street in Collingwood.
Yarra Council CEO is Vijaya Vaidyanath since July 2012.
Suburbs within the City of Yarra
- Abbotsford
- Alphington
- Burnley
- Carlton North
- Clifton Hill
- Collingwood
- Cremorne
- Fairfield
- Fitzroy
- Fitzroy North
- Princes Hill
- Richmond
Australia Day
Council
Yarra City Council is composed of nine councillors elected proportionally as three separate wards, each electing three Councillors. All Councillors are elected for a fixed four-year term of office. The Mayor is elected annually in November by s special meeting of the full council. The most recent local government election was held in October 2016. The current Mayor is Misha Coleman, elected on 28 November 2019.The current Council, elected in 2016, in order of election by ward, is:
Past Yarra councillors
4 Wards (1996–2004)
| Ward | 1996–1999 | 1999–2002 | 2002–2004 |
| Nicholson | John Phillips Ray Thomas | John Phillips 1999–2002 Ray Thomas 1999–2001 Gurm Sekhon 2001–2002 | Gurm Sekhon Jackie Fristacky |
| MacKillop | Steve Watson Linda Hoskins | Steve Watson Linda Hoskins | Greg Barber Deborah Di Natale |
| Merri | Robyn Williams | Robyn Williams | Jenny Farrar |
| Carringbush | John Sawyer Li Hiam Lai | Li Hiam Lai Sue Corby | Li Hiam Lai Sue Corby |
| Docker | Marion Macleod James Martakis | Kay Meadows Fiona Harman | Judy Morton Kay Meadows |
3 Wards (2004–present)
| Ward | 2004–2008 | 2008–2012 | 2012–2016 | 2016–present |
| Nicholls | Kathleen Maltzahn Jackie Fristacky Paul D'Agostino | Sam Gaylard Jane Garrett Jackie Fristacky | Sam Gaylard Roberto Colanzi Jackie Fristacky | Mike McEvoy Misha Coleman Jackie Fristacky |
| Langridge | Jenny Farrar Annabel Barbara / Geoff Barbour Stephen Jolly | Stephen Jolly Amanda Stone Geoff Barbour | Stephen Jolly Amanda Stone Geoff Barbour | Stephen Jolly Amanda Stone Danae Bosler |
| Melba | Kay Meadows Judy Morton Gurm Sekhon | Josh Funder Allison Clarke Dale Smedley | Simon Huggins Misha Coleman Phillip Vlahogiannis | James Searle Mi-Lin Chen Yi Mei Daniel Nguyen |
Economy
The City of Yarra has a high concentration of fashion, technology, and media businesses. Companies located in the City of Yarra include:- Aesop has its global headquarters on Smith Street, Collingwood.
- Carsales.com Ltd and its subsidiary Quicksales has its head office located on Punt Road, Richmond.
- Computershare, one of the largest stock exchange technology and registrar services business in the world is located on Johnston Street Abbotsford.
- Country Road, an upscale Australia clothing and homewares manufacturer and retailer is headquartered on Church Street, Richmond
- Epworth the not-for-profit private health care group, employ 1,800 staff at their head office, and largest hospital, on Bridge Road.
- GlaxoSmithKline operates offices of its pharmaceutical division on Johnston Street, Abbotsford.
- Just Group and its brands Just Jeans, Jay Jays, Jacqui E, Portmans, Dotti, Peter Alexander, and Smiggle are headquartered on Church Street, Richmond
- Madman Entertainment has its head office in the Richmond suburb and in the Melba Ward in Yarra.
- Pacific Star Network Limited, an ASX-listed radio broadcaster best known for SEN 1116, is based on Swan Street, Richmond.
- REA Group which includes realestate.com.au has its head office located on Victoria Street, Richmond.
- Schwartz Publishing publisher of The Monthly, Quarterly Essay and the book imprint Black Inc is located on Langridge Street, Collingwood.
- SitePoint, a global technology publisher and its website subsidiaries 99designs.com, Flippa.com, Learnable.com and Wave Digital are based on Cambridge Street and Wellingston Street, Collingwood.