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1970 onwards

On Christmas Eve 1971, Tropical Cyclone Althea, a category 4 cyclone, battered the city and Magnetic Island, causing considerable damage. Other tropical storms have threatened the area in the intervening years, but with less effect.[citation needed] In October 2000, a Solomon Islands Peace Agreement was negotiated in Townsville.[17]

Climate

Townsville is characterised as a tropical savanna climate (Köppen climate classification Aw), but due to a quirk of its geographical location winter rainfall in particular is not as high as elsewhere in the tropics such as Cairns.[23] The winter months are dominated by SE trade winds and mostly fine weather. Farther north the coastline runs north/south and the trade winds are lifted to produce rainfall right through the year. Townsville however lies on a section of coastline that turns east/west, so the lifting effect is not present. As a result, winter months are dominated by blue skies, warm days and cool nights—although at times significant rainfall may occur.[23] Robinson summarised the climate as follows: The average annual rainfall is 1,143 millimetres (45.0 in) on an average 91 rain days, most of which falls during the six month "wet season" from November through April. Due to the "hit or miss" nature of tropical lows and thunderstorms, there is considerable variation from year to year. This millennium has seen the wettest year on record, with 2,400 millimetres (94 in) precipitation in 2000, and the second driest year on record, when Townsville received only 467 millimetres (18.4 in) in 2001 (driest year was 1969 - 464 millimetres (18.3 in)).[23] Rainfall also varies considerably within the metropolitan area; it typically ranges from 1,136 millimetres (44.7 in) at central Townsville City to 853 millimetres (33.6 in) at Woodstock, a southwestern suburb. December is the warmest month of the year with daily mean maximum and minimum temperatures being 31.4 Â°C (88.5 Â°F) and 24 Â°C (75 Â°F)[26] respectively. July is the coolest month with daily mean maximum and minimum temperatures being 25 Â°C (77 Â°F) and 13.5 Â°C (56.3 Â°F).[26] Townsville experiences an annual mean of 8.4 hours of sunshine per day, averaging 121.7 clear days per year.[23]

Culture, Events and Festivals

The Australian Festival of Chamber Music is an international chamber music festival held over ten days each July in Townsville, North Queensland. The festival has been running since 1991, and attracts many acclaimed international and Australian musicians. Townsville also has its own orchestra, the Barrier Reef Orchestra, which presents concerts throughout North Queensland. The Townsville Entertainment Centre, seating over 5000 people, is host to many national and international music shows, as well as sporting and trade shows. The region has many renowned festivals, many which celebrate the international heritage of many that call North Queensland home. The Annual Greek and Italian Festivals are popular with the locals and tourists alike. The Townsville South hotel and restaurant strip hosts an annual Palmer Street Jazz Festival, as does nearby Magnetic Island (The Great Tropical Jazz Party). The Stable on the Strand is celebrated each Christmas. The Townsville Civic Theatre is North Queensland's premier cultural facility. Since its opening in 1978, the Theatre has been a centre of entertainment and performing arts, providing an environment to further develop the performing arts in Townsville and the North. The Tropic Sun Theatre Company is a professional theatre company based in Townsville. Tropic Sun showcases the talents of local actors, designers, directors and playwrights. It presents four major shows a year.[36] The Perc Tucker Regional Gallery is the public art gallery of Townsville. Located on the eastern end of Flinders Mall, the Gallery focuses on artwork relevant to North Queensland and the Tropics. Every second September the gallery presents sculpture artworks and art festival called Strand Ephemera, exhibited over the two kilometre beachfront strip.[37] The city has many restaurants, concentrated on Palmer Street in South Townsville, Flinders Street and to a lesser extend along the Strand. The city also has a vibrant pub and night-club scene, many of them located in Flinders Street East. Local and national music groups can often be found performing live in these venues.

Defence facilities

The Australian Army maintains a very strong presence in the north of Australia and this is evident by the basing of the Army's 3rd Brigade in Townsville.[49] The 3rd Brigade is a light infantry brigade with significant air-mobile assets. The brigade consists of two Light Infantry Battalions 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment and the 2nd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment and Cavalry contingent. It has integral Artillery, Engineer, Aviation Reconnaissance and Combat Service Support Units. It is a high readiness brigade that has been deployed frequently at very short notice on combat operations outside mainland Australia. These include Somalia, Rwanda, Namibia, East Timor, Bougainville, Solomon Islands, Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition to the 3rd Brigade, a number of other major units are based in Townsville. These include the 5th Aviation Regiment,[50] equipped with Blackhawk and Chinook helicopters, co-located at the RAAF Base in Garbutt and the 10th Force Support Battalion based at Ross Island.[51] 10 FSB is a force logistics unit that provides back up logistic support to deployed units. The battalion provides specialist transport (including amphibious) and supply support. Along with this there is also 11 Combat Service Support Unit and 3Combat Engineer Regiment. The Army also maintains an Army Reserve Brigade in Townsville designated the 11th Brigade. This formation is similar in structure to the 3rd Brigade but comprises reserve soldiers only. There is also two active cadet units, 130ACU located within Heatley Secondary College and 15 ACU located at Ignatius Park College.[52] As with the Army, the Royal Australian Air Force also maintains a presence in Townsville. RAAF Base Townsville, which is located in the suburb of Garbutt, houses the DHC-4 Caribou aircraft from No. 38 Squadron RAAF. This detachment provides support to the Army units in Townsville. The base is also a high readiness Defence asset and is prepared to accept the full range of RAAF aircraft types as well as other international aircraft including the huge US C-17 Globemaster and the Russian Antonov transport aircraft.[53] Townsville is also the staging point for the movement of men and materials to the remote parts of Northern Australia and many overseas locations.[54]

Demographics

Townsville has a younger population than the Australian and Queensland averages.[31] The city has traditionally experienced a high turnover of people, with the army base and government services bringing in many short to medium term workers. The region has also become popular with mine workers on fly in/fly out contracts. Major improvements to the lifestyle infrastructure over the past 10 years has led to a higher living standard, and consequently the population boom.[citation needed] In 2005-06, the Townsville Statistical District grew at just over 3 per cent and was the fifth fastest growing district or division in Australia.[32] Between 2000 and 2005 the annual average population growth in Townsville was 2.5%, compared with 2.2% for Queensland overall.[29]

Description

Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Australia, in the state of Queensland. Adjacent to the central section of the Great Barrier Reef, it is in the dry tropics region of Queensland.[2] Townsville is Australia's largest urban centre north of the Sunshine Coast with the 2006 census recording the Townsville Statistical District (the urban centre) population to be 143,328 people.[1] Townsville is seen as the unofficial capital of North Queensland[3][4] as it hosts a significant number of governmental, community and major business administrative offices for the northern half of the state. Popular attractions include 'The Strand', a long tropical beach and garden strip; Riverway, a riverfront parkland attraction located on the banks of Ross River; Reef HQ, a large tropical aquarium holding many of the Great Barrier Reef's native flora and fauna; the Museum of Tropical Queensland, built around a display of relics from the sunken British warship HMS Pandora; and Magnetic Island, a large neighbouring island, the vast majority of which is national park.

Early history

The Townsville region was originally inhabited by Indigenous Australians, with the Wulgurukaba, Bindal, Girrugubba, Warakamai and Nawagi tribes being the most significant local groups.[5][6] The Wulgurukaba people have a claim to be the traditional owner of the Townsville city area; the Bindal group had a claim struck out by the Federal Court of Australia in 2005.[7] James Cook visited the Townsville region on his first voyage to Australia in 1770, but did not land there. Cook named Cape Cleveland, Cleveland Bay and Magnetic(al) Island.[8] Captain Phillip Parker King and botanist Alan Cunningham were the first Europeans to record a local landing in 1819.[8] In 1846 James Morrill was shipwrecked from the Peruvian, living in the Townsville area among the Bindal people for 17 years before being discovered by white men and returning to Brisbane.[8]

Economy

The Townsville Regional Economy is widely credited as being the most diverse of its kind in Australia. Its recent performance has outstripped neighbouring economies, with growth peaking in 2004-05 at a 12% increase in Gross Regional Product over the median term, and 7.8% in 2006-07, for an average rate of approximately 9% per financial year.[citation needed] Tourism has of late helped in the city's expansion,[citation needed] though its traditional role is an industrial port (via the Port of Townsville) for exporting minerals from Mount Isa and Cloncurry, beef and wool from the western plains, as well as sugar and timber from the coastal regions, trades which continue to influence corporate growth strategies.[citation needed] Economic growth in the region was "not restricted to heavy industry growth attributed to the resources boom under the Howard Government, [as] the region’s tourism growth also outstripped neighbouring regions."[27] * Residents in Townsville have average household incomes about 10% above the state average: in 2003/04 it was closer to the New South Wales average than the Queensland average.[28] * The city remains popular with tourists, and backpackers are particularly drawn to Magnetic Island and the Great Barrier Reef. The city has excellent diving and snorkelling facilities, with a variety of vessels using the port as a home base for their reef tourism activities. In 2004, there were 11,762 businesses in Townsville and 4,610 in Thuringowa.[29] There were still "lots of well-paying job opportunities" in the city itself come mid-2008, when the number of unemployed had risen (nationally) by 100,000 workers, including "considerable employment requirements" in the trades (280 job vacancies), engineering (117), administration (100), sales (97) and hospitality (90).[30] The city also has its own manufacturing and processing industries. Townsville is the only city globally to refine three different base metals—Zinc, Copper and Nickel—and it is currently in strong contention for an aluminium refinery.[citation needed] Nickel ore is imported from Indonesia, the Philippines and New Caledonia and processed at the Yabulu Nickel refinery, 30 kilometres north of the port. Zinc ore is transported by rail from the Cannington Mine, south of Cloncurry, for smelting at the Sun Metals refinery south of Townsville. Copper concentrate from the smelter at Mount Isa is also railed to Townsville for further refining at the copper refinery at Stuart. Townsville has several large public assets due to its relative position and population. These include the largest campus of the only university in northern Queensland, James Cook University, the CSIRO Davies Laboratory, the Australian Institute of Marine Science headquarters, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, the large Army base at Lavarack Barracks and RAAF Base Townsville.

Education

There are over 60 private and State schools of primary and secondary education within the Townsville area. Townsville Grammar School is the oldest co-educational school on the Australian mainland.[citation needed]

Establishment

Townsville itself was first established in 1864.[8] A seaport north of the Burdekin River was essential to service the nascent inland cattle industry, as the Burdekin's massive seasonal floods effectively isolate all of North Queensland for months at a time.[9] John Melton Black of Woodstock Station, an employee of Sydney entrepreneur and businessman Robert Towns, despatched Andrew Ball, Mark Watt Reid and a small party of aborigines to search for a suitable site.[8] Ball's party reached the Ross Creek in April 1864, setting up camp below the rocky spur of Melton Hill near the present Customs House on The Strand.[8] The first party of settlers, led by W.A. Ross, arrived at Cleveland Bay from Woodstock Station on 5 November. In 1866 Robert Towns visited for three days, his first and only visit. He agreed to provide ongoing financial assistance to the new settlement and Townsville was named in his honour.[8] Townsville was declared a municipality in February 1866, with John Melton Black elected first Mayor.[8] Townsville developed rapidly as the major port and service centre for the Cape River, Gilbert, Ravenswood, Etheridge and Charters Towers goldfields.[9] Regional pastoral and sugar industries also expanded and flourished. Townsville's population was 4000 people in 1882 and grew to 13,000 by 1891.[8] In 1901 Lord Hopetoun was on a goodwill tour of northern Australia and accepted an invitation to officially open Townsville's town hall, occasioning the first ever vice-regal ceremonial unfurling of the Australian national flag.[9] Townsville was proclaimed a City in 1902, under the Local Authorities Act.[10]

Federal

Townsville is represented in the Australian House of Representatives by Peter Lindsay MP (Liberal Party of Australia), the Member for the Division of Herbert. Historically a swinging seat, it is currently held by a small margin. Ian Macdonald, one of twelve politicians elected by Queensland to the Australian Senate, is the only Senator based in Townsville.

Geography

Townsville lies approximately 1,300 kilometres (810 mi) north of Brisbane, and 350 kilometres (220 mi) south of Cairns. It lies on the shores of Cleveland Bay, protected to some degree from the predominately south-east weather. Cleveland Bay is mostly shallow inshore, with several large beaches and continually shifting sand bars. Magnetic Island lies 8 km offshore, to the north of the city centre. The Ross River flows through the city. Three weirs, fish stocking and dredging of the river in these reaches has resulted in a deep, stable and clean waterway used for many recreational activities. Thirty kilometres from the mouth (at the junction of Five Head Creek) is the Ross River Dam, the major water storage for the urban areas. The historic waterfront on Ross Creek, site of the original wharves and port facilities, has some excellent old buildings mixed with the later modern skyline. However, the central city is dominated by the mass of red granite called Castle Hill, 292 metres (960 ft) metres high (just 8 metres short of being a mountain). There is a lookout at the summit giving panoramic views of the city and its suburbs, including Cleveland Bay and Magnetic Island. There are a number of parks scattered throughout the city, including three botanical gardens - Anderson Park, Queens Gardens and The Palmetum.

Governance

Townsville is the Northern Queensland administrative centre for many State and Federal Government agencies, housing the area offices of many departments and governmental bodies such as Centrelink and the Australian Taxation Office.

Health

Townsville is within Queensland Health's Townsville Health Service District which also includes Ingham and Palm Island.[43] The primary health facility for the region is Townsville Hospital. It is a teaching hospital located close to the James Cook University School of Medicine in Douglas and is the largest hospital in Australia outside of a capital city. It services communities all the way north up to Papua New Guinea. Townsville Hospital has 460 beds with services. The Hospital employs approximately 72 full-time specialist staff and 48 visiting specialists.[44] There are three additional health campuses in Townsville, Kirwan Health Campus,[45] the Magnetic Island Health Service Centre,[46] and the North Ward Health Campus.[47] Townsville Hospital Dentist is the public dental health facility for the Townsville region, located in North Ward.

James Cook University

The largest of James Cook University's campuses is located in Douglas. The University is planning a billion dollar expansion, including extra student accommodation, a Student Village (i.e shopping mall, cafes, restaurants, etc.), and extra faculties. The Veterinary Sciences undergraduate facility is the newest in Australia, while the Physical and Sports Recreation Science faculty was recently opened to students. The University has a strong and internationally recognised expertise in marine & tropical biology. James Cook University also has a Medical School which is linked with the tertiary level Townsville Hospital.

Japanese influence

In 1896, Japan established its first Australian consulate in the then town, primarily to service some 4,000 Japanese workers who arrived to work in the sugar cane, turtle, trochus, beche de mer and pearling industries.[12][13] With the introduction of the White Australia policy, the demand for Japanese workers decreased, causing the consulate to finally close in 1908.[13]

Local

Townsville is governed by a City Council, composed of a Mayor and 12 Councillors. Following local government reform undertaken by the Government of Queensland, NQ Water, the City of Townsville and the City of Thuringowa were merged. The City Council has no divisions however it may go back to divisions for individual Councillors for the 2012 election. The Mayor of Townsville is Les Tyrell (Independent) who was elected on 15 March 2008, Tyrell is the former Mayor of 17 years of the former local government authority of Thuringowa. The previous Mayor of Townsville for 19 years was Tony Mooney (Australian Labor Party).

Media and communications

Townsville is the media centre for North Queensland, with 5 commercial radio stations, North Queensland ABC radio station, 3 commercial television stations, one regional daily newspaper and one community weekly newspaper (both owned by News Ltd). There are no local Sunday papers although The Sunday Mail (Qld) - based in Brisbane - does have a North Queensland edition.

Notable people

* Libby Trickett (née Lenton), Australian Olympic Swimmer * Laurie Lawrence, Australian Olympic swimming coach * Gorden Tallis, former Australian Rugby League player * Scott Donald, Australian Rugby League player * Aaron Payne, Australian Rugby League player * Gene Miles, former Australian Rugby League player * Mitchell Johnson, Australian cricketer * James Hopes, Australian cricketer * Pud Thurlow, Australian test cricketer in the 1930s * Jake Spencer, Australian Football League player * Natalie Cook, Olympic beach volleyball player * Tony David, Professional darts champion * Rob Hammond, Australian Field Hockey Player * Sir Lawrence Wackett, Australian aircraft industry pioneer * Clem Christesen, journalist and editor of the Australian literary magazine, Meanjin * Ralph Douglas Kenneth Reye, Australian pathologist who first described Reye's syndrome.[55] * Rick Farley, Australian activist for Indigenous Australians rights and former CEO National Farmers Federation * William Heatley, former Liberal senator * Natalie Weir, Australian choreographer * James Cannan CB, CMG, DSO, former Australian Major General * Jarrod Bannister, Australian athlete and Olympian * Renita Farrell-Garard, Australian Hockey player and dual Olympic gold medalist * Madge Ryan, Hollywood film actress[56]

Population statistics

Category Medium range population projections Historical yearly population statistics[33] population estimate +9.5% since 1996

Second World War

During World War II, the city played host to over 50,000 American and Australian troops as it became a major staging point for battles in the South West Pacific. A large United States Armed Forces contingent supported the war effort from various bases around the city. The first bombing raid on Rabaul on 23 February 1942 was carried out by six B-17s based near Townsville. It was common for B-26 Marauders, B-17 Flying Fortresss or B-25 Mitchell bombers to take off on long range bombing raids from Garbutt air base. Within the town a great deal of construction occurred during World War II. For example there are numerous hidden air raid bunkers, reports of secret tunnels and similar secret units. * No. 3 Fighter Sector RAAF, Wulguru & North Ward * 1 Wireless Unit, Pimlico & Stuart & Roseneath * North Eastern Area Command HQ, Townsville, Federation building, Sturt St * Castle Hill, Townsville underground tunnels & bunkers * Green St. Bunker, West End, Sidney St West End, Project 81 (SES building) In July 1942, three small Japanese air raids were made against Townsville, which was by then the most important air base in Australia.[14] Several 500 pounds (230 kg) bombs were dropped in the harbour, near the Garbutt airfield and at Oonoonba - at the latter location craters are still clearly visible.[15] No lives were lost and structural damage was minimal, as the Japanese missed their intended target of the railway and destroyed a palm tree. While the Japanese aircraft were intercepted on two of the three raids, no Japanese planes were shot down.[16]

Sport and recreation

Townsville hosts a National Rugby League team, the North Queensland Cowboys, a National Basketball League team, the Townsville Crocodiles, a Women's National Basketball League team, the Townsville Fire. Starting in 2009, Townsville will host a new A-League football (soccer) team, North Queensland Fury, who will play their home games at Dairy Farmers Stadium. North Queensland Fury have signed former Liverpool F.C. legend, Robbie Fowler as marquee player. The Cowboys play at Dairy Farmers Stadium in the suburb of Kirwan. The stadium was first built in 1995 after it was announced that Townsville would be home to the then new rugby league team, the North Queensland Cowboys. The stadium has a capacity record of 30,302, set in 1999. The stadium was extensively upgraded in 2005-6, including increased capacity by extending the eastern terrace. Additionally the Dairy Farmers Stadium was an official venue the 2003 Rugby Union World Cup, with three matches played in Townsville. Townsville hosted the popular Japanese national rugby union team during the World Cup, with the team playing the majority of the preliminary round games at Dairy Farmers Stadium. In 2006, the Super 14 rugby union team Queensland Reds played their final home fixture of the season at Dairy Farmers Stadium, after playing all of their previous home fixtures in their regular home of Brisbane. The Riverway Project, an urban and recreational development in the suburb of Thuringowa has an international standard cricket and AFL stadium known as theTony Ireland Stadium. Townsville also hosts three Touch Football associations. The Townsville/Castle Hill Touch Association (TCHTA) conducts many competitions annually at its grounds at Queens Park, Townsville.[38] Thuringowa Touch Association (TTA) also conducts competitions at Greenwood Park, Kirwan.[39][40] Townsville and Thuringowa sides are regular combatants in the annual North Queensland Tropical Cyclones Touch Association's Championships.[41] For the past two years, representative sides from both associations have featured heavily in the finals series with either of the two associations claiming the coveted Men's Opens division. The first NQ Championships were held in Townsville in June 1978, with the teams from the then 10 affiliated bodies competing in Mens Over 25. The Championships have still been held in Townsville for many years due to its central location and the strength of the sport in the district.[42] AFL Townsville operate an Australian rules football league in the region. Townsville is also the stronghold of Zone 6 of the Queensland Darts Association.[citation needed] Current and past players include Tony David, winner of the 2002 Embassy World Championships, David Nogar Jnr, the first Queensland player to throw a nine dart game in a sanctioned match, Wiggy Solomon and Jeremy Fagg, both currently in the top 10 Queensland players (as rated by the Darts Federation of Australia).[citation needed]

State

In the Unicameral Queensland Parliament four electorates cover the Townsville Region: * Electoral district of Burdekin (southern suburbs): Rosemary Menkens MP (National Party of Australia) – Opposition Shadow Minister for Environment, Multiculturalism and Women * Electoral district of Mundingburra (central/southern suburbs): Hon Lindy Nelson-Carr MP (Australian Labor Party) – Government Minister for Communities, Disability Services, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Partnerships, Multicultural Affairs, Seniors and Youth * Electoral district of Thuringowa (western/northern suburbs): Hon Craig Wallace MP (Australian Labor Party) – Government Minister for Natural Resources and Water and Minister Assisting the Premier in North Queensland * Electoral district of Townsville (CBD + Magnetic & Palm Islands): Mandy Johnstone MP (Australian Labor Party)

Townsville/Thuringowa

Townsville city was surrounded by rural land, organised into the Thuringowa Shire. The shire ceded land to the Townsville city as it expanded.[11] The shire became the Thuringowa City Council, a distinct local government area. The Townsville and Thuringowa city councils amalgamated into the Townsville City Council in March 2008, as part of the Queensland state government's reform program.[11]

Transport

Townsville is connection point of two major National Highway routes, the A1 (Bruce Highway), and the A6 (Flinders Highway). The A1 connects Townsville to Cairns in the north, and Mackay, Rockhampton, and Brisbane in the south. The A6 connects Townsville to Charters Towers and Mount Isa in the west. Numerous road projects are under construction or planned in the future, especially the Townsville Ring Road, which will eventually become the new A1 route bypassing the urban areas of the city. The North Coast railway line, operated by Queensland Rail, meets the Western line in the city's south. Rail services from Brisbane pass through Townsville and continue through to Cairns, including the regular Tilt Train service between Brisbane and Cairns. Townsville is a major destination and generator of rail freight services. Container operations are also common in the city[48]. The products of the local nickel and copper refineries as well as minerals from the western line (Mount Isa) are transported to the port for trans-shipment to other destinations. Townsville has a significant port at the mouth of Ross Creek. The Port of Townsville has bulk handling facilities for importing cement, nickel ore (for processing at the Yabulu Nickel Refinery), and fuel, and for exporting sugar and products from North Queensland's mines. The port has three sugar storage sheds, with the newest being the largest under-cover storage area in Australia.[citation needed] Townsville's public transport system consists of bus services operated by Sunbus. Sunbus provides regular services between many parts of the city, and also operates several express routes. Public transport is also available from the CBD to Bushland Beach, a route run by Townsville's Hermit Park Bus Service, Townsville's biggest Charter Bus Service. Regular ferry and vehicular barge services operate to Magnetic Island and Palm Island. The ferry service to both islands is operated by Sunferries. The City is served by Townsville International Airport, but hasn't handled regular international flights since 2002. The Airport handles direct flights to Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Gold Coast, and Canberra as well as to regional destinations such as Cairns, Mount Isa, Rockhampton and Mackay.

Tropical Cyclones

Like most of North Queensland, Townsville is prone to tropical cyclones. They usually occur between November and May (the so-called Cyclone Season), forming mainly out in the Coral Sea, and usually tracking west to the coast. Notable cyclones to affect the Townsville Region have been: Cyclone Tessi (2000), Cyclone Sid (1998, in particular damaging The Strand), Cyclone Joy (1990), Cyclone Althea (1971), Cyclone Leonta (1903) and Cyclone Sigma (1896).

Urban layout

Urban development continues to expand west, north and south into the former rural areas, and inner city high-density development has also created population growth and gentrification of the central business district (CBD). One significant contributor to CBD development was the construction of a new rail passenger terminal and moving the railway workshops,[18] releasing prime real estate which formerly belonged to Queensland Rail for the development of residential units, retail projects and a new performing arts centre.[19] The skyline of Townsville's central business district has undergone dramatic changes over the last few years, with a number of new highrise buildings constructed.[20] Medium term expansion of Townsville will be focused on two major urban developments anticipated to start soon. Rocky Springs, a satellite city to the south of Townsville, is expected to eventually be home to 50,000 people. Additionally, expansion to the North includes a new $1 billion 5,000-lot housing estate, which will be located close to the Bruce Highway, just north of the Bohle River. It will be the largest planned housing estate in North Queensland to this point.[21] The State Government announced it will be offering 270ha of State-owned land to the north for future urban expansion.[22]

Vocational education

The city is home to the Barrier Reef Institute of TAFE[34] - a Technical and Further Education College, a campus of the Australian Agricultural College Corporation and a new Australian Technical College – North Queensland[35] campus which opened in 2007 in Douglas.