Palmerston, Northern Territory

Infobox Australian Place | type = city
name = Palmerston
state = nt
lga = City of Palmerston

---

caption = Location of Palmerston in Australia
pop = 27,185 (2006)
pop_footnotes = [cite news|url=http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/C0DC3A6796ACE31DCA25741A000DECF1/$File/32180ds0003_2001-07.xls#'Table 7'!A1|title=Regional Population Growth|author=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=31 March 2008|accessdate=2008-06-15]
poprank =
density = 9.1
area = 52.9
est = 1981
timezone = ACST
utc = +9:30
dist1 = 21
location1= Darwin
dist2 = 297
location2= Katherine|Katherine
dist3 = 1478
location3= Alice Springs
postcode = 0830
stategov = Blain
stategov2 = Brennan
stategov3 = Drysdale
stategov4 = Nelson
fedgov = Solomon
fedgov2 =
county = County of Palmerston
Palmerston is a satellite city in the Northern Territory, Australia. Palmerston is situated near Darwin Harbour and has a population of 27,185 people which makes up 12% or the territory's population and making it the second largest city in the Northern Territory. Palmerston is currently the fastest growing city in the Northern Territory and was once the fastest growing city in Australia for a short while.

There are 10 suburbs all together in Palmerston which are close to the Palmerston city centre. Palmerston is mostly residential with two light industrial areas in the north of the city.

Like the rest of the Top End, has a tropical climate, with a wet season and a dry season. It receives heavy rainfall during the Wet, and is well-known for its spectacular lightning.

History

Palmerston was the name given in 1855 to Darwin itself. Darwin assumed its current name in 1911. The name first applied to the capital city by the South Australian Government in remembrance of Lord Palmerston, who became Prime Minister of Britain in 1855. [cite web|url=http://www.nt.gov.au/lands/lis/placenames/origins/palmerstons.shtml |title=Palmerston City|accessmonthday=March 31|accessyear=2008|work=NT Lands Group]

The land for modern Palmerston was acquired in 1971 by the Australian government after concerns of under-supply of residential land in Darwin. The site of Palmerston was selected as the land was adjacent an existing transportation corridors. The decision to proceed with the development of Palmerston was made in 1980. Planning and development was managed by the Palmerston Development Authority.cite web|url=http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au/webdata/resources/files/City_of_Palmerston___Profile.pdf |title=Palmerston City History|accessmonthday=July 10|accessyear=2008|work=Palmerston City Council|format=PDF] Development of Palmerston began during the early 1980s. Suburbs of Palmerston were built in stages. The first suburbs built were Gray and Driver, followed by Moulden, then Woodroffe and Marlow Lagoon. Suburbs then continued to grow during the 1990s, the suburbs were Bakewell, Rosebery and Durack. The population of Palmerston continues to be the highest in the Northern Territory, from the population increasing nearly 8,000 people between 1991 and 2001 to 21,000 people. Palmerston's population is expected to continue growing, and reach over 40,000 people in the next 10 - 15 years [cite web|url=http://www.id.com.au/nt/commprofile/default.asp?id=251&gid=6000&pg=1 |title=Palmerston City|accessmonthday=March 31|accessyear=2008|work=NT Community Profile] At the beginning of construction opf Palmerston it wasanticipated that Palmerston woulc be estimated at housing around 50,000 residents. Recent revisions of the population estimates that the current trends show that that figure is much lower, and is estimated a little more than 42,000.

Since 1995/1996 the construction commenced on 5 new Palmerston suburbs, Rosebery, Bakewell, Durack, Gunn, and Farrar. These were developed in stages with only the final stages of new Palmerston suburbs yet to begin.In 2000 the Palmerston Town Council sought and obtained a change in the name of the municipality to City of Palmerston. [cite web|url=http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au/webdata/resources/files/City_of_Palmerston___Profile.pdf |title=Palmerston City Suburban Growth|accessmonthday=July 10|accessyear=2008|work=Palmerston City|format=PDF]

Palmerston is approximately a 15 minute drive away from the Darwin city centre, 15-18 minutes from Darwin's Northern suburbs and 10 - 20 minutes from Howard Springs and the rural area.

Landmarks

The major land-mark in Palmerston is the Power and Water Corporation's water storage tank, which supplies the city with fresh potable water. The City also has a natural escarpment on its eastern side, which has extensive walking paths.

Geography

Palmerston is situated between the outer industrial areas of Darwin and the rural areas of Howard Springs. The city is located between the outer industrial areas of Darwin and the rural areas of Howard Springs, 21 kilometres (13 mi) south - east of territories capital Darwin, and is situated in the local government area of the City of Palmerston.

The urban area of Palmerston extends from the Stuart Highway in the north and in the eastern parts to the Cty of Palmerston borders. The city itself is located in the centre, with the outer rural area proposed for development as the population grows [cite web|url=http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=292 |title=About Palmerston |accessmonthday=April 2|accessyear=2008|work=City of Palmerston] .

Palmerston like Darwin has a tropical climate, with a wet season and a dry season. The city receives heavy rainfall in the wet season, this occurs between December and March. Thunderstorms are common and humidity is regularly over 70 per cent.

Palmerston was named after Lord Palmerston, a British Prime Minister [cite web|url=http://www.id.com.au/nt/commprofile/default.asp?id=251&gid=6000&pg=1 |title=Palmerston City|accessmonthday=March 31|accessyear=2008|work=NT Community Profile] . Palmerston was the name given in 1855 to Darwin itself. Darwin assumed its current name in 1911. The development of Palmerston began during the ealry 1980s as the main urban growth centre, because of the growth in the Darwin area. Palmerston was declared a city on August 2 2000.

Regions and suburbs

The City of Palmerston initially consisted of the Palmerston Town (CBD), Driver and Gray. These were followed by Moulden and Woodroffe after development in those areas commenced in 1983. Also included in the City of Palmerston are the semi-rural suburb of Marlow Lagoon, the suburb of Archer and the industrial zones of Yarrawonga and Pinelands.Due to the explosive growth of Palmerston further developments have occurred leading to the creation of the suburbs of Rosebery, Bakewell, Gunn, Durack and more recently Farrar.

The suburbs of Durack and Gunn also have colloquial names as assigned to them by the developers of the area, being "Fairway Waters" (due to the man-made lakes and golf course) and "The Chase" respectively.

Future areas of land for expansion are the proposed suburbs of Archer, Bellamack Johnston, Zuccoli and Mitchell and are located on the south-east side of the existing city. These plots of expansion are expected to allow an increase of up to 14,000 additional residents in the city of Palmerston, with the first land release beginning in Bakewell in 2009. [cite web|url=http://newsroom.nt.gov.au/index.cfm?fuseaction=viewRelease&id=3252&d=5|title=Tenders Called for Bellamack Headworks|accessmonthday=July 5|accessyear=2008|work=Northern Territory Government] [cite web|url=http://newsroom.nt.gov.au/index.cfm?fuseaction=viewRelease&id=4145&d=5|title=High Level Of Interest In Bellamack|accessmonthday=July 5|accessyear=2008|work=Northern Territory Government]

Climate

Palmerston has a tropical climate like Darwin with distinct wet and dry seasons. The dry season runs from May to September. In the coolest months of June and July, daily temperature range is 19 to 30°C. The Wet season is associated with tropical cyclones and monsoon rains. The majority of rainfall occurs between December and March when thunderstorms are common and humidity is regularly over 70 per cent.

Demographics

As of the 2006 Census, there were 23,614 people residing in 9,000 households. The median age of persons in Palmerston was 28 years. 18.9% of the population of Palmerston were children aged between 5-14 years, and 47.1% were persons aged 25-54 years.Census 2006 AUS|id=UCL705500|name=Palmerston (Urban Centre/Locality)|accessdate=2008-04-02|quick=on] 74.8 per cent of Palmerston's population are Australian born, with the biggest overseas birthplaces were, English (692 or 2.9 per cent), New Zealand (437 or 1.9 per cent), Philippines (278 or 1.2 per cent), Papua New Guinea (144 or 0.6 per cent) and East Timor (116 or 0.5 per cent).

The 2006 Census found the most common religious affiliations in Palmerston had No Religion (6,106 or 25.9 per cent), Catholicism (5,263 or 22.3 per cent), Anglican (3,561 or 15.1 per cent), Uniting Church (1,205 or 5.1 per cent) and Presbyterian and Reformed (419 or 1.8 per cent).

Palmerston’s population represents one quarter of the combined Palmerston-Darwin total population, and represents 11.7% of the Territory’s population. [cite web|url=http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au/webdata/resources/files/Background_Paper_2_Community_Profile.pdf |title=Palmerston City Population|accessmonthday=March 31|accessyear=2008|work=Palmerston City|format=PDF]

Population growth

Palmerston along with Darwin is one of the fastest growing cities in the Northern Territory and in Australia. Palmerston recorded the fastest increase of population of all the Local Government Areas in the Northern Territory. Palmerston increased by 1,300 people growing by 5 per cent. The fastest growths occurred within Palmerston which includes the suburbs of Farrar Rosebery, Marlow Lagoon and Gunn and Palmerston City. [cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/3218.0Main%20Features42006-07?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=3218.0&issue=2006-07&num=&view=#NORTHERN%20TERRITORY|title=Palmerston population ABS|accessmonthday=April 20|accessyear=2008|work=Australian Bureau of Statistics] By 2016 the population of Palmerston will be more than half the size of Darwin's population, and the combined Palmerston-Litchfield population will be just 2 000 less than the City of Darwin.

Government

The Palmerston region is covered by the Local Government Area of the City of Palmerston. The council was created in 1985. The council chambers are located in the Palmerston City Centre.

The Palmerston City Council (Incorporated under the Northern Territory Local Government Act 1993) governs the City of Palmerston which takes in the CBD and the suburbs. The City of Palmerston has governed Palmerston since 1985. The Palmerston City Council consists of 8 elected members, the Mayor, the Deputy Mayor and six aldermen. The city is not divided into wards, thus each alderman represents constituents from the entire city. [cite web|url=http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=238|title=City of Palmerston Elected Members|accessmonthday=April 20|accessyear=2008|work=City of Palmerston] The current mayor of Palmerston is Robert Macleod. He was appointed Mayor in May 2007 following the retirement of Annette Burke.

In territory politics, Palmerston is located in the Legislative Assembly districts of Blain, Brennan, Drysdale, Nelson with two seats held by the Australian Labor Party, one by the Country Liberal Party and one by the Independents.

In federal politics, Palmerston is located in one House of Representatives division shared with Darwin - the Division of Solomon.

Economy

Palmerston has around 12,945 people in the labour force. The unemployment rate in the city was 2.3 per cent which was well below the Northern Territory average of 4.3 per cent.

The largest industry employers in Palmerston are public administration & safety (2,751 or 21.3 per cent), retail trade (1,190 or 9.2 per cent), construction (892 or 6.9 per cent, health care & social assistance (829 or 6.4 per cent) and education & training (825 or 6.4 per cent). [cite web|url=http://www.nt.gov.au/business/services.cfm?cat5id=99|title=Palmerston Economy|accessmonthday=July 18|accessyear=2008|work=Northern Territory Government] The total numbers of businesses in Palmerston was 1,410. Of these, 57% of businesses were categorised as non employing.

Palmerston has continued growth in median house prices, with an increase of 5.3% for the year to March 2008. The median house and unit prices in Palmerston were $395,000 and $300,000. The vacancy rate in Palmerston was 0.9% compared with 0.5% for Darwin. Palmerston has provided around a half of the vacant land sales in the Northern Territory. [cite web|url=http://www.nt.gov.au/business/services.cfm?cat5id=99|title=Palmerston Real Estate|accessmonthday=July 18|accessyear=2008|work=Northern Territory Government] Palmerston has two major shopping centres including Palmerston Shopping Centre and Palm City Oasis. The Palmerston Shopping Centre contains over 69 businesses including a Coles Supermarket, and the discount department - store Target. Palm City Oasis contains a Woolworths supermarket and 18 businesses. Some Palmerston suburbs contains smaller shopping centres

Education

Preschool, primary and secondary

Palmerston is served by eight primary schools and two secondary schools and three non - government schools. [cite web|url=http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au/webdata/resources/files/Educational_Opportunities_WEB.pdf|title=City of Palmerston Schools|accessmonthday=May 15|accessyear=2008|work=City of Palmerston|format=PDF] There are over 4,234 primary and secondary students enrolled in Palmerston with 2,942 students attending primary education and 1,292 students attending secondary education.cite web|url=http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/ViewData?action=404&documentproductno=70510&documenttype=Details&order=1&tabname=Details&areacode=70510&issue=2006&producttype=Census%20Tables&javascript=true&textversion=false&navmapdisplayed=true&breadcrumb=POLTD&&collection=Census&period=2006&productlabel=Type%20of%20Educational%20Institution%20Attending%20(Full/Part-Time%20Student%20Status%20by%20Age)%20by%20Sex&producttype=Census%20Tables&method=Place%20of%20Usual%20Residence&topic=School%20Education&|title=Palmerston ABS education census table|accessmonthday=May 15|accessyear=2008|work=ABS] There are over 3,100 students enrolled in government schools in Palmerston, 509 students enrolled in Catholic schools and 625 students enrolled in independent schools. The Northern Territory Government announced in its 2008 Budget that two new schools a primary and middle schools will be built in the Palmerston suburb of Rosebery which will cater for up to 1,450 students and will cost $48.8million. Following the construction of the two new schools in Rosebery an additional primary schools will be built in Palmerston East, which will include the planned suburb of Zuccoli. [cite web|url=http://newsroom.nt.gov.au/index.cfm?fuseaction=viewRelease&id=3980&d=5|title=Two New Schools for Palmerston|accessmonthday=July 18|accessyear=2008|work=Northern Territory Government]

Tertiary and vocational

The Charles Darwin University Palmerston campus is located in the suburb of Durack. The campus hosts the School of Tourism and Hospitality as well as expanding into a mini-School of Conservation and Land Management. There are over 4,318 students enrolled in tertiary and further education courses. [cite web|url=http://www.id.com.au/nt/commprofile/default.asp?id=251&gid=6000&pg=10|title=Community id Schools|accessmonthday=May 15|accessyear=2008|work=City of Palmerston] 247 of Palmerston residents were enrolled in higher education at Charles Darwin University and 4,071 students enrolled in vocational education and training. [cite web|url=http://www.nt.gov.au/business/services.cfm?cat5id=99|title=Palmerston Education|accessmonthday=July 18|accessyear=2008|work=Northern Territory Government]

Sport and recreation

Palmerston is home to the Palmerston Football Club (known as the "Magpies") Northern Territory Football League and is based out of the Archer Sporting Complex. [cite web|url=http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=278 |title=Archer Sporting Complex|accessmonthday=April 4|accessyear=2008|work=City of Palmerston] Palmerston has a strong presence in Australian rules football. The Archer Sporting Complex has an Australian rules football field, a senior Softball diamond and senior Baseball diamond. There are also a number of sporting clubs located at the complex. The complex home to the, Palmerston and Rural Baseball Club, the Palmerston Pirates Softball team, and the Palmerston Raiders Rugby League team.

Palmerston has one football team, the Palmerston SC which plays in the Northern Zone League.

The city has a "skate park" located on University Avenue that is funded by the Palmerston City Council. This park allows locals to perform Skateboarding as well as other related sports, including Inline Skating.There is a local near-Olympic size swimming pool with a gymnasium.

There is also a boat ramp allowing access to the Elizabeth River for small trailable marine craft. Persons utilising the area are cautioned that both Box jellyfish and crocodiles are present in the river.

A branch of the YWCA is located at the CBD.

The Palmerston Scouts are located on University Avenue, adjacent to the Palmerston branch of the RSL.

Palmerston is well served by its many park reserves. Some parks also offer coin-operated public barbecue facilities.

Media

A local free tabloid news paper called the Palmerston Sun is published weekly by News Corporation.The "Northern Territory News" tabloid published daily by News Corporation is also widely available in Palmerston. There is also the Sunday edition of the Northern Territory News "The Sunday Territorian" also published by News Corporation.Most large state-wide and interstate newspapers are also available from local retailers, albeit with a delay in arrival.

Palmerston also receives Radio and television services sourced from transmitters located in the Darwin region. Which include the three commercial channels Southern Cross Darwin, Channel Nine Darwin and Darwin Digital Television and the two Government owned channels ABC and SBS Television. Pay TV is also available through both satellite and fixed cable from the encumbant provider, Austar.

Palmerston receives most Radio stations from Darwin. Which include ABC Local Radio (105.7FM), Radio National (657AM), ABC Classic FM (107.3FM) and Triple J (103.3FM).

Infrastructure

Health

Palmerston does not have a public hospital but many of Palmerston's health needs are serviced by the Palmerston Health Precinct which includes the Palmerston Community Care Centre, public dental service, St Johns' Ambulance, Medical Specialists Clinic and the Farrar Medical Centre. There are seven general practices in the Palmerston health region, four of which provide after-hours services. [cite web|url=http://www.nt.gov.au/business/services.cfm?cat5id=99|title=Palmerston Health|accessmonthday=July 18|accessyear=2008|work=Northern Territory Government]

Transport

The city has a network of approximately 32 km of bicycle paths, most of which are lit for night-time usage.

There is also a public bus service operated by Darwinbus that offers transportation around Palmerston, into Darwin City and out to Darwin's Northern Suburbs.

The Darwin City Airport is the closest air terminal, being serviced by both Qantas, Jetstar, Tiger Airways and Virgin Blue, with daily flights to and from all major cities in Queensland, New South Wales, Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, and the Northern Territory. There are no direct flights to Tasmania or the Australian Capital Territory at the current stage. There are also direct flights to East Timor, Indonesia and Singapore. The airport is located in the Darwin suburb of Marrara, approximately 20 minutes away from Palmerston.

Darwin based taxis are also available in Palmerston, as well as a number of local and Darwin based mini-bus operators.

Utilities

Water storage, supply and Power for Palmerston is managed by Power and Water Corporation, which is owned by the Government of the Northern Territory. The corporation is also responsible for management of sewerage and the major water catchments in the region. Water is mainly stored in the largest dam, The Darwin River Dam which holds up to 90% of Palmerston's water supply. For many years, Palmerston principal water supply came from Manton Dam.

Palmerston and its suburbs are powered by the Channel Island Power Station. The largest power plant in the Northern Territory.

References

External links

* [http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/LocationSearch?locationLastSearchTerm=Palmerston&locationSearchTerm=Palmerston&newarea=UCL705500&submitbutton=View+QuickStats+%3E&mapdisplay=on&collection=Census&period=2006&areacode=UCL705500&geography=&method=Place+of+Usual+Residence&productlabel=&producttype=QuickStats&topic=&navmapdisplayed=true&javascript=true&breadcrumb=PL&topholder=0&leftholder=0&currentaction=104&action=401&textversion=false&subaction=1 Palmerston] at the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2006 Census)
* [http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au Palmerston City Council site]
* [http://www.palmerston.nt.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=225 Palmerston City Council Library Service]
* [http://www.nt.gov.au/ Northern Territory Government Portal]
* [http://www.cdu.edu.au/ Charles Darwin University Site]