Ballina, New South Wales

Infobox Australian Place | type = town
name = Ballina
state = nsw


caption = Location of Ballina in New South Wales (red)
lga = Ballina Shire Council
pop = 16,477 (2006)
pop_footnotes =Census 2006 AUS|id=UCL103200|name=Ballina (Urban Centre/Locality)|accessdate=2008-09-09|quick=on]
postcode = 2478
mayor = Cr Phillip Silver
est = 1840s
elevation = 1.3
elevation_footnotes=cite web
publisher = Bureau of Meteorology
title=Ballina Airport AWS
work=Climate Averages for Australian Sites
url = http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tables/cw_058198.shtml
accessdate = 2006-11-24 ]
maxtemp = 24.5
mintemp = 14.3
rainfall = 1749.8
stategov = Ballina
fedgov = Page
dist1 = 750
location1 = Sydney
dist2 = 205
location2 = Brisbane
dist3 = 97
location3 = Surfers Paradise

Ballina is a town in northern New South Wales and the seat of the Ballina Shire Council Local Government Area on the North Coast, New South Wales, Australia. It had a population of 16,477 in the 2006 Census.

Location

Ballina is located on the Pacific Highway, and was established on the northern shore of the Richmond River near Cape Byron, Australia's most easterly point, in the 1840s. Ballina boasts some of the most beautiful surfing beaches and picturesque headlands on the east coast of Australia, such as Angel's Beach. It is approximately convert|750|km|mi|0|abbr=on north of Sydney and convert|205|km|mi|0|abbr=on south of Brisbane. It is home to the World's Largest Prawn (made of concrete and fibreglass).

Ballina is situated on the mouth of the Richmond River, which was an important transport route for the region for the first 100 years after settlement. The river and its estuaries abound with marine wildlife and for many years has remained a favorite of fishermen and water sports enthusiasts alike.

History

Ballina has a number of famous "landfalls" associated with it. The first, in 1928, was Charles Kingsford Smith. His plane, the "Southern Cross", crossed the coast over Ballina after its epic journey across the Pacific.Fact|date=February 2007 Ballina had a festival associated with the event during the 1970s and 1980s, and a school in East Ballina bears the name "Southern Cross". The second landfall associated with Ballina was in 1973 when the Las Balsas rafts were towed into Ballina by fishing trawlers after their journey from Ecuador.cite web |url= http://www.bigvolcano.com.au/custom/maritime/ballina.htm|title= Ballina Naval & Maritime Museum|accessdate=2006-11-03 |format= |work= |publisher= Ballina Naval & Maritime Museum] They originally had planned to arrive in Mooloolaba in Queensland, but currents had forced them off their destination. Their journey was almost twice as long as the Kon-Tiki expeditions of 1947 and proved that people could have travelled across the Pacific in ancient times.

A branch railway line connected Ballina with the Casino-Murwillumbah Railway at Booyong. The line was opened on 24 August 1930 and closed on 12 January 1949 ["The Booyong-Ballina Branch Line" Hagarty, D. Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, June, 1953 pp65-68] .

Name

Some discussion exists as to how Ballina got its name. Some believe it was named after the Irish town of Ballina, but this is unlikely. The more plausible explanation is that the name is derived from an Indigenous Australian word meaning "place of many oysters". The names "Bullinah" and "Boolinah" have been mooted. But perhaps, also, the Aboriginal name reminded the settlers of Ballina in Ireland so the name's origination could have been a combination of both sources.

Ballina has a sister city agreement with its Irish namesake.

Development

The population of Ballina Shire is estimated at 38,461 in 2006 (source ABS 2007) [Census 2006 AUS|id=LGA10250|name=Ballina (A) (Local Government Area)|accessdate=2008-09-09|quick=on] . There are four high schools (Xavier, Southern Cross, Ballina and Emmanuel), five primary schools (Holy family, St. Francis Xavier, Emmanuel, Ballina and Southern Cross), a hospital and aged care facilities.

There are numerous developments around the Ballina shire which include:
1. Ballina Airport Expansion
2. Southern Cross Master Plan
3. Pacific Pines
4. Ballina Heights
5. Cumbalum Ridge
6. Ballina Gateway
7. Ballina Rsl Hotel Development
8. Ballina Town Centre Master Plan
9. Ballina Foreshore Master Plan
10. Marina Quays Tower
11. Ballina Bypass
12. Alstonville Bypass
13. Wollingbar Urban Expansion
14. Ferngrove
15. Angel Beach North Urban Village
16. Skennars Ridge Urban Development
17. Ross Lane Urban Development
18. Ballina Community Centre
19. Lennox Head Community Centre
20. Ballina Regional Sports Centre
21. Ballina Indoor Sports Stadium

Ballina Bypass

The long awaited Ballina bypass project will upgrade 12.4 km of dual carriageway road, extending from south of Ballina at the intersection of the Bruxner and Pacific Highways to north of Ballina at the intersection with Ross Lane at Tintenbar. 12km of local roads will be upgraded, with 22 bridges being used, 1.6 million cubic meters of erthworks, and approximately 140 000 cubic meters of concrete.

Early works started in April 2008 with commencement of substantial works started on 16th June 2008. The Cumbalum to Ross lane section is due to open by the end of 2010 with full completion mid 2012.

Theres numerous roadworks along the highway including Streetlight/median strip/lanes widening between Teven Road and Horizon Road and upgrading Kerr/River Street intersection into a traffic lights.

There are more works including:Kerr Street/Bangalow Rd and Kerr/Fox Streets upgrade into traffic lights.North Creek/Southern Cross Drive upgrade into a roundabout.North Creek and Pacific Highway upgrade into traffic lights.

Famous People

Walker Kerry Saxby moved to Ballina when she was thirteen. Initially a swimmer and middle distance runner, Kerry changed to walking in 1981, competing with the Ballina Athletic Club. The Kerry Saxby pathway runs past the Olympic Pool and Waterslide to the Naval and Maritime Museum.

Dustin Dollin

Economy

A report completed in June 2005 estimated that in the 2002-03 FY the total production of goods and services in Ballina Shire was valued at $1.8 billion. Service industries dominate the local economy with 82% of estimated output, followed by manufacturing (13%) and primary industry (5%). The largest single industries are (in order) - construction, property and business services, retail trade, health and community services, education and food manufacturing.

Airport

The major airport for the region servicing Byron Bay and Lismore is also in Ballina. The airport has links to Melbourne and Sydney with Jetstar, Regional Express and Virgin Blue each operating services. Ballina Airport is located in Southern Cross Drive and is convert|5|km|mi|0|abbr=on from the Ballina CBD. The Airport is a 20 minute road trip to Byron Bay and 30 minutes to Lismore. In 2005 the Ballina airport was renamed the Ballina Byron Gateway airport in a bid to attract more people to the area.

References

External links

* [http://www.ballinashire.com.au Ballina Shire Council]
* [http://www.ballinachamber.com.au Ballina Chamber of Commerce]
* [http://www.wlra.us/wl/wlprawn.htm World's Largest Prawn]
* [http://www.rootsweb.com/~nswballi/settlements/settlements.htm History of the town and discussion on the origins of its name]
* [http://www.tedc.com.au/Downloads/Economic%20Model%20Report.pdf#search=%22%22an%20economic%20model%20for%20the%20tweed%20and%20northern%20rivers%22%22/ An Economic Model for the Northern Rivers]
* [http://www.ballinabypass.com.au Ballina bypass (Roads and Traffic Authority)]