City of Coffs Harbour

This article is about the local government area. For the regional city, see Coffs Harbour, New South Wales.

City of Coffs Harbour New South Wales
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates	30°19′S 153°07′E
Population	72,944 (2016 census) 78,759 (2021)
• Density	62.080/km2 (160.79/sq mi)
Established	1 September 1987 (1987-09-01)
Area	1,175 km2 (453.7 sq mi)
Mayor	Paul Amos (Independent)
Council seat	Coffs Harbour
Region	Mid North Coast
State electorate(s)	Coffs Harbour
Federal division(s)	Cowper Page
Website	City of Coffs Harbour
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall 27 °C 81 °F 6.6 °C 44 °F 1,647.3 mm 64.9 in
LGAs around City of Coffs Harbour: Clarence Valley Clarence Valley Tasman Sea Clarence Valley City of Coffs Harbour Tasman Sea Bellingen Bellingen Tasman Sea

The City of Coffs Harbour (also known as the Coffs Harbour City Council) is a local government area in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The area under administration is 1,175 square kilometres (454 sq mi), expanded in 2004 to take in parts of the former Pristine Waters local government area.

The administrative seat is located in Coffs Harbour; and the area is adjacent to the Pacific Highway, and the North Coast railway line.

The mayor of the City of Coffs Harbour is Paul Amos, an independent politician.

Towns and localities

Towns and localities in the City of Coffs Harbour are listed below.

Coffs Harbour suburbs

• Coffs Harbour
• Boambee
• Boambee East
• Bonville
• Brooklana
• Bucca
• Coramba
• Corindi Beach
• Crossmaglen
• Emerald Beach
• Karangi
• Korora
• Lowanna
• Nana Glen
• Timmsvale
• Toormina
• Upper Orara

Other

• Arrawarra
• Corindi
• Emerald Beach
• Moonee Beach
• Mullaway Beach
• Red Rock
• Sandy Beach
• Sapphire Beach
• Sawtell
• Toormina
• Ulong
• Upper Corindi
• Woolgoolga

Heritage listings

The City of Coffs Harbour has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

• High Conservation Value Old Growth forest
• Coffs Harbour Regional Museum

Demographics

At the 2011 census, there were 68,413 people in the Coffs Harbour local government area, of these 48.5% were male and 51.5% were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 4.1% of the population, nearly double the national average. The median age of people in the City of Coffs Harbour was 42 years; some five years higher than the national median. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 19.2% of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 18.0% of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 48.4% were married and 14.8% were either divorced or separated.

Population growth in the City of Coffs Harbour between the 2001 Census and the 2006 census was 11.94%; and in the subsequent five years was 5.40%. When compared with total population growth of Australia for the same periods, being 5.78% and 8.32% respectively, population growth in the Coffs Harbour local government area was higher than the national average. The median weekly income for residents within the City of Coffs Harbour was slightly below the national average.

At the 2011 census, the proportion of residents in the Coffs Harbour local government area who stated their ancestry as Australian or Anglo-Celtic exceeded 82% of all residents (national average was 65.2%). In excess of 55.4% of all residents in the City of Coffs Harbour nominated a religious affiliation with Christianity at the 2011 census, which was slightly above the national average of 50.2%. Meanwhile, as at the Census date, compared to the national average, households in the Coffs Harbour local government area had a lower than average proportion (6.6%) where two or more languages are spoken (national average was 20.4%); and a significantly higher proportion (90.3%) where English only was spoken at home (national average was 76.8%). A significant exception was that households in the Coffs Harbour local government area where Punjabi was spoken was three times the national average.

Selected historical census data for Coffs Harbour local government area
Census year			2001	2006	2011	2016
Population		Estimated residents on census night	61,186	64,910	68,413	72,944
		LGA rank in terms of size within New South Wales			30th
		% of New South Wales population			0.99%
		% of Australian population	0.33%	0.33%	0.32%
Cultural and language diversity
Ancestry, top responses		Australian			31.5%
		English			31.2%
		Irish			9.0%
		Scottish			7.7%
		German			3.2%
Language, top responses (other than English)		Punjabi	1.0%	1.0%	1.3%
		German	0.4%	0.5%	0.5%
		Italian	0.4%	0.4%	0.4%
		Dinka	n/c	n/c	0.2%
		French	n/c	n/c	0.2%
Religious affiliation
Religious affiliation, top responses		Anglican	28.9%	27.1%	24.5%
		No Religion	14.5%	18.5%	23.1%
		Catholic	23.2%	23.0%	22.2%
		Uniting Church	6.2%	5.0%	4.4%
		Presbyterian and Reformed	5.1%	4.6%	4.3%
Median weekly incomes
Personal income		Median weekly personal income		A$364	A$469
		% of Australian median income		78.1%	81.3%
Family income		Median weekly family income		A$706	A$1,097
		% of Australian median income		68.7%	74.1%
Household income		Median weekly household income			A$902
		% of Australian median income		77.7%	73.1%

Council

Current composition and election method

Coffs Harbour City Council is composed of nine councillors, including the mayor, for a fixed four-year term of office. The mayor is directly elected while the eight other councillors are elected proportionally as one entire ward. The most recent election was held on 4 December 2021, and the makeup of the council is as follows:

Party		Councillors
	Independents	4
	Team Moose	2
	Coffs Coast First	1
	Labor	1
	The Greens	1
	Total	9

The current Council, elected in 2021, in order of election, is:

Councillor		Party	Notes
	Paul Amos	Team Moose	Mayor
	Scott Wolgamot	Independent
	George Cecato	Coffs Coast First
	Rodger Pryce	Unaligned
	Tegan Swan	Unaligned
	Tony Judge	Labor
	Julie Sechi	Team Moose
	Jonathan Cassell	Greens
	Sally Townley	Unaligned

Sister city

The city of Coffs Harbour has one sister city:

• Sasebo, Japan

See also

• Coffs Harbour Shire
• Local government in New South Wales