City of Merri-bek

The City of Merri-bek (/ˈmɛriː bɛk/^[2]) is a local government area in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. It comprises the inner northern suburbs between 4 and 11 kilometres from the Melbourne CBD. The Merri-bek local government area covers 51 km² (20 sq mi), and in June 2018, it had a population of 181,725.^[1]

Merri-bek City Council Victoria
Location within Melbourne metropolitan area
Coordinates	37°44′S 144°57′E
Population	181,725 (2018)[1] (33rd)
• Density	3,560/km2 (9,230/sq mi)
Established	1994
Area	51 km2 (19.7 sq mi)[1]
Mayor	Adam Pulford (Greens)
Council seat	Coburg
Region	Greater Melbourne
State electorate(s)	Broadmeadows Brunswick Melbourne Niddrie Pascoe Vale
Federal division(s)	Cooper Maribyrnong Melbourne Wills
Website	Merri-bek City Council
LGAs around Merri-bek City Council: Hume, Brimbank Hume Whittlesea Moonee Valley Merri-bek City Council Darebin Moonee Valley Melbourne Yarra

Previous logo of the City of Moreland

The local government area was created as the City of Moreland in 1994 during the amalgamations of local governments by the state government, being created from the former local government areas of the City of Brunswick, the City of Coburg and the southern part of the City of Broadmeadows. It was renamed to Merri-bek in September 2022.^[3]

In 2004 the Victorian Electoral Commission (VEC), an independent authority created under Victorian state legislation, conducted a representation review of the council's electoral structure, resulting in a recommendation that the 10 single councillor wards be replaced by three multi-councillor wards. A consequence of the change from single-councillor to multi-councillor wards was a change in election method from Instant runoff voting to proportional representation via Single transferable vote. Elections are held every four years.^[4]

Name

In November 2021, it came to the council's attention that Moreland's namesake was indirectly associated with a Jamaican plantation site that had traded slaves up to the 1800s.^[5][6] This historical information was contained in the 2010 Moreland Council publication Thematic History,^[7] and published in books and articles as far back as 1944.^[8]

In October 1839, Scottish surgeon and settler Dr Farquhar McCrae was sold land between Moonee Ponds Creek and Sydney Road by the Crown in the area's first colonial sale. McCrae gave the land the name Moreland. Some suggest he may have taken this name from a Jamaican sugar plantation that his paternal grandfather Alexander McCrae worked at^[9] from the late 1760s to the early 1790s, which was involved in slave trading,^[8] and kept up to 500 to 700 enslaved people in the operation in any one year.^[10] Greens Mayor Mark Riley said "The history behind the naming of this area is painful, uncomfortable and very wrong. It needs to be addressed".^[11][12] In May 2022 a choice of three proposed names from the Woi-wurrung language was announced by Riley and Uncle Andrew Gardiner, deputy chair of the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation: Wa-dam-buk, meaning “renew”; Merri-bek, meaning “rocky country”; and Jerrang, meaning “leaf of tree”. The names were scheduled to be decided by July 2022 following community consultation.^[13]

The community consultation for the renaming commenced in May 2022 and ended June 2022. Some residents expressed dissatisfaction with the process resulting in a petition to council.^[14]

On 3 July 2022 (coinciding with the start of NAIDOC Week) the Council voted at a Special Council Meeting to officially endorse Merri-bek as the preferred name.^[15] The name was submitted to the Minister for Local Government for consideration and the Minister's decision to alter the name was gazetted on 13 September 2022 and came into operation on 26 September.^[3]

Council services

Merri-bek Council runs the Counihan Gallery at the Brunswick Town Hall, a free public art gallery named after the local artist, Noel Counihan. Other art events supported by Council include the MoreArt event, an art in public spaces show located along the Upfield transport corridor. The council also sponsors various street festivals around the municipality, the best known being the Sydney Road Street Party.

One of the highlights of Merri-bek is its public library. Merri-bek City Libraries has five branches.

Other Merri-bek local government services include maternal and child health service, waste and recycling collection, parks and open space, a youth space called Oxygen, services for children, and aged services.

Climate action

Merri-bek/Moreland Council has been one of the leading municipal councils in Australia in adopting policies on climate action and sustainability. A January 2020 ClimateWorks Australia local government report identified City of Moreland as one of 3 out of 57 municipal jurisdictions in Australia to have a "fully aligned net zero by 2050 target that addresses both operational and community emissions."^[16]

City of Merri-bek is a member of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy,^[17] the Cities Power Partnership,^[18] Climate Emergency Australia (CEA), Climate Active, The Northern Alliance for Greenhouse Action (NAGA), and has declared pledges in the TAKE2 scheme with Sustainability Victoria.^[19]

Council declared a climate emergency on 12 September 2018.^[20]

Council operational emissions reduction

For operational emissions, Moreland Council was certified as a ‘carbon neutral’ council in 2012. This required purchase of carbon offset credits. Moreland was the second council in Victoria, and the third in Australia, to receive this certification. A target of 30% less emissions than 2011, with a stretch goal of 40% by 2020, was over-achieved with an emissions cut of 69% by 2020, which will reduce the carbon offsets required to be purchased.^[21]

Moreland City Council installed Victoria's first EV fast charge station in 2013. This has now grown to a network of 16 public EV charging stations around the municipality which are powered by 100% zero emissions renewable energy from the Crowlands Wind Farm, near Ararat.^[22]

In 2014, City of Moreland joined with the City of Melbourne and several other institutions and established the Melbourne Renewable Energy Project (MREP).^[23] This project developed and funded the construction of a purpose-built 39 turbine, 80 MW Crowlands windfarm, which started supplying 100% renewables power to Council facilities and buildings in 2019.^[24]

Net zero by 2040 community emissions target

Moreland's community wide municipal emissions in 2019 were 1,609,000 tonnes CO2e, composed of sectoral emissions of: Waste (3%), Transport (17%), Gas (21%), Electricity (59%).^[25]

The City of Merri-bek has set a community emissions reduction target of net zero emissions by 2040 and established the Moreland Zero Carbon 2040 Framework Strategy and the first 5-year action plan to achieve that target.^[26]

Climate related policies and strategies

Other key climate and sustainability policies and strategies driving climate action include: Climate Emergency Action Plan (2020 to 2025), Moreland Integrated Transport Strategy, Waste and Litter Strategy, Achieving zero Carbon in the Planning Scheme, Sustainable Buildings Policy, Urban Heat Island Effect Action Plan, Urban Forest Strategy, Watermap, Procurement policy, Cooling the Upfield Corridor Action Plan, Food Systems Strategy, Fossil Fuel Divestment Strategy, Moreland Nature Plan.

Climate action endorsements

During 2021 City of Moreland supported a climate disaster levy on coal exports,^[27] and endorsed the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, the first government jurisdiction in Australia to do so.^[28][29]

Suburbs of City of Merri-bek

Council

Current composition

Merri-bek City Council
Leadership
Mayor	Adam Pulford[30]
Deputy Mayor	Lambros Tapinos[30]
Structure
Council political groups	Greens (3)   Independent (4)   Labor (2)   Socialist Alliance (2)

Councillors are elected from three multi-member wards, two electing four members, and one electing three, for a total of eleven councillors. The council's most recent election took place in October 2020.^[4]

Its current composition is:

Party		Councillors
	Independent	4
	Greens	3
	Labor	2
	Socialist Alliance	2
Total		11

In order of election by ward, is:

Ward	Party		Councillor	Notes
North-East		Labor	Annalivia Carli Hannan
		Greens	Adam Pulford
		Socialist Alliance	Sue Bolton
		Independent	Helen Pavlidis-Mihalakos
North-West		Independent	Oscar Yildiz
		Independent	Helen Davidson
		Greens	Angelica Panopoulos
		Socialist Alliance	Monica Harte	Milad El-Halabi, elected in 2020, stepped down in 2022. Monica Harte won the count-back by the Victorian Electoral Commission[31]
South		Labor	Lambros Tapinos
		Greens	Mark Riley
		Independent	James Conlan	Left Greens in February 2023

Mayor

Main article: List of mayors of Merri-bek

The current mayor is Adam Pulford Cr.^[30][32]

Past councillors

1996–2004 (10 wards)

Year	Box Forest		Glencairn		Glencairn		Hoffman		Lincoln Mills		Lygon		Merri		Moonah		Newlands		Westbreen
	Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor
1996		John Sawyer (Independent)		Chris Iliopoulos (Independent)		Rosemary Kerr (Independent) [33]		Mike Hill (Labor)		Rod Higgins (Labor)		Glenyys Romanes (Labor)		Anthony Helou (Labor)		Andrew Rowe (Labor)		Stella Kariofyllidis (Labor)		Geoff Lutz (Independent)
1999		Ken Blair (Independent)		Robert Larocca (Labor)				Andy Ingham (Independent)				Leigh Snelling (Labor)								Melanie Raymond (Independent) [34]
2000										Vicki Yianoulatos (Labor)
2001								Joe Caputo (Labor)
2002						Stephen Roach[35] (Independent)						Fraser Brindley (Greens)				Mark Higginbotham (Labor)				Joe Ficarra (Labor)

2004–2024 (three wards)

North-East Ward

Year	Councillor		Party	Councillor		Party	Councillor		Party	Councillor		Party
2004		Anthony Helou	Labor		Mark O'Brien	Labor		Andrea Sharam	Greens		Daniel De Lorenzis	Independent
2008					Michael Teti	Labor		Toby Archer	Greens		Stella Kariofyllidis	Labor
2012								Lenka Thompson	Greens
2012		Sue Bolton	Socialist Alliance								Rob Thompson	Independent Liberal
2016					Annalivia Carli Hannan	Labor		Natalie Abboud	Greens		Ali Irfanli	Independent
2020			Sue Bolton Moreland Team					Adam Pulford	Greens		Helen Pavlidis-Mihalakos	Independent
2022a			Socialist Alliance									Victorians
2022b												Independent

North-West Ward

Year	Councillor		Party	Councillor		Party	Councillor		Party	Councillor		Party
2004		Mark Higginbotham[36]	Labor		Kathleen Matthews-Ward[37]	Labor		John Kavanagh[38]	Democratic Labour		Milad El-Halabi	Labor
2008		Oscar Yildiz	Labor								Enver Erdogan	Labor
2012					Helen Davidson	Independent					Lita Gillies	Labor
2014									Independent
2016											Dale Martin	Greens
2018			Independent
2020								Milad El-Halabi	Labor		Angelica Panopoulos	Greens
2021			Victorians
2022a									Independent Labor
2022b			Independent					Monica Harte	Socialist Alliance

South Ward

Year	Councillor		Party	Councillor		Party	Councillor		Party
2004		Joe Caputo	Labor		Alice Pryor	Labor		Josephine Connellan	Greens
2008		Lambros Tapinos	Labor
2012					Meghan Hopper	Labor		Samantha Ratnam	Greens
2016					Mark Riley	Greens
2017								Jess Dorney	Greens
2020								James Conlan	Greens
2023									Independent

2024 (11 wards)

See also: Local Government Act 2020

These wards will come into effect at the October 2024 election.

Year	Bababi Djinanang		Box Forest		Brunswick West		Bulleke-bek		Djirri-Djirri		Harmony Park		Pascoe Vale South		Pentridge		Randazzo		Warrk-Warrk		Westbreen
	Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor		Councillor
2024		TBD		TBD		TBD		TBD		TBD		TBD		TBD		TBD		TBD		TBD		TBD

Election results

2024

2024 Victorian local elections: Merri-bek^{[39][40][41][42][43]}

Party			Votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
	Labor		23,111	24.48	4.18
	Your Local Independents		21,940	23.24	new
	Greens		21,067	22.31	6.39
	Victorian Socialists		10,047	10.64	6.69
	Independents		8,968	9.50	35.10
	Socialist Alliance		6,271	6.64	1.72
	Independent Liberal		1,622	1.72	new
	Fusion		352	0.37	new
Formal votes			94,408	97.14
Informal votes			2,780	2.86
Total			97,188	100.00
Registered voters / turnout			123,327	78.81

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2024 Victorian local elections in Northern Melbourne § Merri-bek results.[edit]

2020

2020 Victorian local elections: Moreland^[44]

Party			Votes	%	Swing	Seats	Change
	Independent		41,866	44.60	+4.16	3	1
	Labor		20,901	20.30	−8.30	2
	Greens		16,396	15.92	−13.92	4
	Sue Bolton Moreland Team		5,062	4.92	+0.21	1
	Reason		4,637	4.50	+4.50	0
	Victorian Socialists		4,068	3.95	+3.95	0
	Animal Justice		935	0.91	+0.91	0

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2020 Victorian local elections in Northern Melbourne § Moreland.[edit]

2016

2016 Victorian local elections: Moreland^[45]

Party			Votes	%	Seats	Change
	Independent		25,164	36.49	4	2
	Greens		20,582	29.84	4	3
	Labor		19,728	28.60	2	1
	Socialist Alliance		3,249	4.71	1
Formal votes			39,365	100.0

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2016 Victorian local elections § Moreland.[edit]

2002

2002 Victorian local elections: Moreland^[46]

Party			Votes	%	Seats	Change
	Labor		18,237	46.33	7	3
	Independent		11,271	28.64	2	4
	Greens		9,134	23.21	1	1
	Socialist Alliance		714	1.82	0
Total formal votes			39,365	100.0

Townships and localities

At the 2021 census, the city had a population of 171,357 up from 162,558 at the 2016 census.^[47]

Population
Locality	2016	2021
Brunswick	24,473	24,896
Brunswick East	11,504	13,279
Brunswick West	14,159	14,746
Coburg^	26,185	26,574
Coburg North	7,601	8,327
Fawkner^	14,043	14,274
Fitzroy North^	12,339	12,781
Glenroy	22,245	23,792
Gowanbrae	2,773	2,971
Hadfield	5,610	6,269
Oak Park	6,205	6,714
Parkville^	7,409	7,074
Pascoe Vale	17,051	18,171
Pascoe Vale South	10,069	10,534
Tullamarine^	6,605	6,733

^ - Territory divided with another LGA

Sister cities

• Xianyang, Shaanxi, China
• Solarino, Italy
• Canterbury, New South Wales, Australia
• Aileu, East Timor
• Mansfield, Victoria, Australia
• Sparta, Greece

See also

• List of Melbourne suburbs

Notes

References

1. "3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2017-18: Population Estimates by Local Government Area (ASGS 2018), 2017 to 2018". Australian Bureau of Statistics. Australian Bureau of Statistics. 27 March 2019. Retrieved 25 October 2019. Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018.
2. "Renaming Moreland". Conversations Merri-bek. Retrieved 17 May 2023.
3. "Order Altering the Name of Moreland City Council" (PDF). Victorian Government Gazette. p. 3871. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
4. "Results for Moreland City Council Elections 2020". Victorian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
5. "Changing Moreland's name". Brunswick Community History Group. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
6. "Minutes of the Special Council Meeting - 13 December 2021" (PDF). Moreland City Council. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
7. "City of Moreland Thematic History" (PDF). City of Moreland. 1 May 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 November 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
8. Lesh, James (2022). Report on the place name: Moreland : Legacies of Slavery. City of Moreland. Coburg, Victoria. ISBN 978-0-646-85827-2. OCLC 1313068942.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
9. Lesh, Dr James (13 April 2022). Report on the place name: Moreland (PDF) (Report). Deakin University. ISBN 9780646858272. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
10. "Council asked to consider Moreland name change". City of Moreland Council. Archived from the original on 25 November 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
11. "Melbourne council to ditch slave-link name". NITV. 25 November 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
12. Fowler, Michael (24 November 2021). "'Shocked' Melbourne council to change name after discovering slavery link". The Age. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
13. Geraets, Nell; Fowler, Michael (14 May 2022). "New Indigenous names for Moreland Council proposed". The Age. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
14. "Community demand more consultation". The Age. 9 August 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
15. Council, Moreland City. "With new Merri-bek name, Council is a step closer to reconciliation". Moreland City Council. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
16. Proudlove R, Bravo C, Denis-Ryan, A (January 2020). "Net zero momentum tracker – local government report". ClimateWorks Australia. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
17. "Global Covenant of Mayors City Dashboard - Moreland". Global Covenant of Mayors. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
18. "Moreland City is a Power Partner". Cities Power Partnership. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
19. "Our Sustainability Story". City of Moreland. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
20. "Media Release: Moreland Council adopts Climate Emergency". Climate Action Moreland. 13 September 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
21. "Moreland City Council slashes its carbon emissions". Zero carbon Moreland. City of Moreland. 21 June 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
22. "Use an Electric Vehicle". Zero Carbon Moreland. City of Moreland. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
23. Jewell, Cameron (1 December 2015). "Melbourne consortium forms to drive renewable investment". The Fifth Estate. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
24. "Melbourne Renewable Energy Project: A new generation of energy". City of melbourne. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
25. "Moreland 2019 municipal emissions snapshot". Snapshot Climate Tool. Ironbark Sustainability. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
26. "About Zero Carbon Moreland". Zero Carbon Moreland. City of Moreland. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
27. "Moreland Council supports a Climate Disaster Levy". Climate Action Moreland. 11 March 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
28. "Moreland City Council says no to fossil fuels". Zero Carbon Moreland. City of Moreland. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
29. "Fossil Fuel Treaty". Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative. Retrieved 1 December 2021.
30. Phillips, Mark (15 November 2023). "Greens hold sway as Pulford is elected Mayor". Brunswick Voice. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
31. Jacob Andrewartha (23 March 2022). "Second socialist elected in Moreland, after Labor property developer steps down". greenleft. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
32. Merri Bek City Council https://merri-bek.vic.gov.au/my-council/about-council/councillors/mayors-and-councillors/. Retrieved 23 August 2024. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
33. "First Council". Moreland City Council. Archived from the original on 20 February 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
34. "Second Council". Moreland City Council. Archived from the original on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
35. "Third Council". Moreland City Council. Archived from the original on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
36. Mayne, Stephen (30 January 2006). "The Green mayor who kept his council car". Crikey. Archived from the original on 9 December 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
37. Cooke, Dewi (25 March 2010). "ALP suspends trio for breaking ranks". The Age. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
38. Tessa, Hoffman (27 October 2012). "Moreland Council elections 2012". Moreland Leader. Internet Archive. Archived from the original on 4 April 2013. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
39. Victorian Electoral Commission. "Merri-bek City Council Results". www.vec.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
40. "Merri-bek Labor Team for 2024 Council elections". Merri-bek Labor. Archived from the original on 17 September 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
41. "Merri-bek". Victorian Greens. Archived from the original on 17 September 2024. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
42. "Do you want your Councillors to put you first and not their Political Ideology?". Facebook. Oscar Yildiz 4 Pascoe Vale. 8 October 2024. Archived from the original on 8 October 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2024. VOTE 1 YOUR LOCAL INDEPENDENTS
43. "With the Council Elections upon us, your Vote is more important than ever". Facebook. Oscar Yildiz 4 Pascoe Vale. 13 September 2024. Archived from the original on 8 October 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
44. "Moreland City Council election results 2020". Victorian Electoral Commission.
45. "Moreland City Council election results 2016". Victorian Electoral Commission.
46. "Election Results". Trove. Moreland City Council. Archived from the original on 16 September 2004. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
47. "Census | Australian Bureau of Statistics". www.abs.gov.au. 11 January 2023.

External links

• Media related to City of Moreland at Wikimedia Commons
• Official Merri-bek City Council website
• Moreland Online Community Directory
• List of Moreland's Friendship cities
• Moreland Community Profile: census information and demographics^{[permanent dead link]}
• Metlink local public transport map
• Link to Land Victoria interactive maps Archived 24 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine
• Merri-bek City Libraries website