City of Moonee Valley
Local government area in Victoria, Australia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The City of Moonee Valley is a local government area located within the metropolitan area of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It comprises the inner north-western suburbs between 3 and 13 kilometres from the Melbourne city centre. In 2023, the City of Moonee Valley Estimated Resident Population was 126,486, with a population density of 2,935 persons per square km, based on the 2023 Census.
City of Moonee Valley | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Location within Melbourne metropolitan area. | |||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||
| Country | Australia | ||||||||||||
| State | Victoria | ||||||||||||
| Region | Greater Melbourne | ||||||||||||
| Established | December 1994 | ||||||||||||
| Council seat | Moonee Ponds | ||||||||||||
| Government | |||||||||||||
| • Mayor | Cr Rose Iser | ||||||||||||
| • State electorates | |||||||||||||
| • Federal divisions | |||||||||||||
| Area | |||||||||||||
• Total | 43 km2 (17 sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Population | |||||||||||||
| • Total | 130,501 (2025)[2] | ||||||||||||
| • Density | 3,030/km2 (7,860/sq mi) | ||||||||||||
| Website | City of Moonee Valley | ||||||||||||
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History
The City of Moonee Valley was formed in December 1994 after the merger of the City of Essendon (which had been expanded south-eastwards in 1993) and the part of the City of Keilor south-east of the Albion–Jacana railway line.
On 1 July 2008, the parts of North Melbourne and Kensington in the Moonee Valley LGA were transferred to the City of Melbourne.[3][4]
The original council logo from 1994 was replaced in February 2010.[5]
Exchange prefixes in the city are 937x, 837x, 933x or 833x (the latter left over from the old City of Keilor).
Features
The Moonee Valley is a culturally diverse region with a substantial residential population and various commercial set-ups and industries. It comprises the Moonee Valley Racecourse, Essendon Airport and has several shopping precincts, restaurants, parks and offices. It is well connected and easily accessible through trams and the Craigieburn train line. It is also a thriving business centre, with close to 10,000 businesses operating in the region.[6]
Council
Wards
Prior to the 2024 Council Elections, The City of Moonee Valley had three wards: Buckley, Myrnong and Rose Hill.[7]
Buckley Ward comprises Essendon Fields, Essendon North, Strathmore, Aberfeldie, most of Essendon and Strathmore Heights, and parts of Moonee Ponds and Essendon West.[7]
Myrnong Ward comprises Ascot Vale, Flemington, Travancore, most of Moonee Ponds and part of Essendon.[7]
Rose Hill Ward comprises Avondale Heights, Keilor East, Airport West, Niddrie, most of Essendon West and part of Strathmore Heights.[7]
At the 2024 Council Elections, nine wards were established with each ward electing once councillor each.[8] The following wards were established;
- Airport Ward
- Buckley Ward
- Canning Ward
- Fairbairn Ward
- Milleara Ward
- Myrnong Ward
- Queens Park Ward
- Steele Creek Ward
- Woodlands Ward
Current composition
Councillors are elected from nine single member wards. The current council was elected in October 2024, its composition is:[9]
| Ward | Party | Councillor | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airport | Independent Liberal | Hamish Jones | ||
| Buckley | Independent Liberal | John Barnes[10] | ||
| Canning | Labor | Paula Theocharides | ||
| Fairbairn | Labor | Phil Burn | Deputy Mayor[11] | |
| Milleara | Independent | John Sipek | ||
| Myrnong | Labor | Rose Iser | Mayor[11] | |
| Queens Park | Independent | Ava Adams | ||
| Steele Creek | Independent Liberal | Samantha Byrne | ||
| Woodlands | Labor | Fran Cosgriff | ||
Mayors
The current mayor is Rose Iser and the Deputy Mayor is Phil Burn. They were elected by council in October 2025 and will serve the 2025–26 year.
Past councillors
2008−2024 (three wards)
Buckley Ward
| Year[a] | Councillor | Party | Councillor | Party | Councillor | Party | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Jan Chantry | Labor | Paul Giuliano | Independent | Narelle Sharpe | Independent | |||
| 2012 | |||||||||
| 2016 | Rebecca Gauci Maurici | Liberal | Richard Lawrence | Independent | |||||
| 2020 | Cam Nation | Independent | Ava Adams | Independent | |||||
| 2024 | Jessica O'Neil | Independent | |||||||
Myrnong Ward
| Year[b] | Councillor | Party | Councillor | Party | Councillor | Party | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Jim Cusack | Labor | Rose Iser | Greens | James Rankin | Independent | |||
| 2011 | Miriam Gillis | Independent | |||||||
| 2012 | Nicole Marshall | Labor | Cam Nation | Liberal | |||||
| 2014 | No East West Link | ||||||||
| 2015 | Independent | ||||||||
| 2016 | |||||||||
| 2020 | Katrina Hodgson | Labor | Rose Iser | Independent | Jacob Bettio | Independent | |||
| 2024 | Labor | ||||||||
Rose Hill Ward
| Year[c] | Councillor | Party | Councillor | Party | Councillor | Party | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | John Sipek | Labor | Shirley Cornish | Labor | Ange Kenos | Independent | |||
| 2012 | Andra Surace | Independent | |||||||
| 2016 | Independent | ||||||||
| 2016 | Samantha Byrne | Independent | |||||||
| 2020 | Pierce Tyson | Labor | |||||||
Libraries
The City of Moonee Valley has five libraries:[13]
- Ascot Vale Library
- Avondale Heights Library and Learning Centre
- Flemington Library
- Niddrie Library
- Sam Merrifield Library (Moonee Ponds)[14]
The libraries offer uncommon services such as a seed library, where customers can take home seeds to grow plants or flowers.[15] In 2024, Moonee Valley Libraries removed overdue fines for late return of items. The change was made to remove a potential barrier of people using the library services.[13]
Townships and localities
At the 2021 census, the city had a population of 121,851 up from 116,671 at the 2016 census.[16]
| Population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Aberfeldie | 3,897 | 3,925 |
| Airport West | 7,564 | 8,173 |
| Ascot Vale | 14,750 | 15,197 |
| Avondale Heights | 11,633 | 12,388 |
| Essendon | 20,596 | 21,240 |
| Essendon Fields | 0 | 13 |
| Essendon North | 2,987 | 3,071 |
| Essendon West | 1,439 | 1,559 |
| Flemington^ | 7,719 | 7,025 |
| Keilor East^ | 14,514 | 15,078 |
| Moonee Ponds | 14,250 | 16,224 |
| Niddrie | 5,479 | 5,901 |
| Strathmore | 8,419 | 8,980 |
| Strathmore Heights | 1,004 | 1,047 |
| Travancore | 2,480 | 2,116 |
