East Mackay, Queensland


East Mackay is a coastal suburb of Mackay in the Mackay Region, Queensland, Australia.

Geography

As the name suggests, East Mackay is the suburb to the east of the city centre. It is flat low-lying coastal land. It is bounded by the Pioneer River to the north and the Coral Sea to the east. There is a sandy beach along the foreshore to the sea known as Town Beach. It is possible to swim there at high tide, but, as the tide goes out, extensive mudflats are revealed.
The suburb is mostly used for residential purposes except for the northern part of the suburb at the mouth of the Pioneer River, which is a wetland known as the Sandfly Creek Environmental Reserve and managed by the Mackay Regional Council. The wetland serves a number of purposes, acting as a levee against coastal erosion, providing a habitat for shorebirds and other fauna, and providing a walking track for visitors.

History

Victoria Park State School opened on 1 July 1926. On 27 January 1970, the school was divided to create a separate Victoria Park State Infants School for the early years of schooling, but on 16 December 1994 the infants school was merged back into the main school.

Amenities

The Bluewater Trail which connects a number of popular recreation areas passes through East Mackay roughly following the riverside and coastline.
Queens Park at Goldsmith Street has a number of amenities including an orchid house, a band rotunda, a cricket pitch, picnic tables and playgrounds. A number of areas in the park can be hired for weddings.

Education

Victoria Park State School is a primary school for boys and girls operated by the Queensland Government on the north-east corner of Goldsmith Street and Shakespeare Street. In 2016, the school had an enrolment of 612 students with 48 teachers and 36 non-teaching staff.