City of Hobsons Bay

City of Hobsons Bay
City of Hobsons Bay
Local government area
	Location within Melbourne metropolitan area
Country	Australia
State	Victoria
Region	Greater Melbourne
Established	June 1994
Council seat	Altona
Government
• Mayor	Daria Kellander
• State electorates	Laverton; Point Cook; Williamstown;
• Federal divisions	Fraser; Gellibrand;
Area [1]
• Total	64 km2 (25 sq mi)
Population
• Total	96,470 (2018)[1]
• Density	1,507/km2 (3,904/sq mi)
Website	City of Hobsons Bay
	LGAs around City of Hobsons Bay

Hobsons Bay council chambers in Altona

The City of Hobsons Bay is a local government area in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It comprises the south-western suburbs between 6 and 20 km from the Melbourne city centre.

It takes its name from Hobsons Bay, the water body off the east code of the LGA, named after Captain William Hobson. The city has an area of 64 square kilometres, and in June 2018 had a population of 96,470.[1]

History

The City of Hobsons Bay was founded on 22 June 1994 from the amalgamation of the City of Williamstown, the City of Altona (including an industrial area that it had gained from the City of Sunshine less than 12 months earlier[2]), the suburb of South Kingsville from the City of Footscray,[3] and the suburbs of Laverton, Seabrook and the western part of Altona Meadows from the City of Werribee.

The City of Hobsons Bay's predecessor LGAs (green) as they were in 1994

Council

Starting with the 2024 election, Hobsons Bay has been restructured into seven single-member wards, with each councillor elected through preferential voting. Previously, councillors were chosen from three multi-member wards.

The councillors currently serving as of the 2024 election are:[4][5]

Ward		Councillor	Notes
Altona	Independent	Daria Kellander	Mayor 2024–2025
Altona Meadows	Independent	Diana Grima	Mayor 2025–present
Altona North	Independent Labor	Rayane Hawli	Deputy Mayor 2024–2025
Laverton	Independent Labor	Paddy Keys-Macpherson
Spotswood	Independent	Kristin Bishop
Williamstown	Independent	Lisa Bentley	Deputy Mayor 2025–present
Williamstown North	Independent	Michael Disbury

Education

Libraries

The library, run by the council has five branches: Altona, Altona Meadows, Altona North, Newport and Williamstown. Reflecting the multiculturalism of the community, the library service has a large amount of material in eight different languages.

The Environment Resource Centre is located in Altona library and provides the community access to resources concerning the environment, including initiatives and environmental groups in Hobsons Bay.

Transport

Pier Street, Altona

Suburban railway

Hobsons Bay has seven train stations on the Werribee railway line, in PTV Zones 1 and 2. These stations are Spotswood, Newport, Seaholme, Altona, Westona, Laverton and Aircraft. Previously on this line were the stations of Mobiltown, Paisley, and Galvin.

Williamstown railway line is another service which runs through Hobsons Bay. It departs the Werribee railway line at Newport and visits the stations of North Williamstown, Williamstown Beach, and Williamstown.

Freeways

The interchange between the West Gate Freeway, Western Ring Road and Princes Freeway lies in the north-west of Hobsons Bay.

From Hobsons Bay, the West Gate Freeway provides access to the Melbourne CBD and eastern suburbs (over the iconic West Gate Bridge), the Princes Freeway provides access to outer south-western suburbs and Geelong, while the Western Ring Road leads to the northern suburbs and Melbourne Airport.

Townships and localities

Suburban streets of Altona North

The 2021 census, the city had a population of 91,322 up from 88,778 in the 2016 census[6]

Population
Locality	2016	2021
Altona	10,762	11,490
Altona Meadows	19,160	18,479
Altona North	12,152	12,962
Brooklyn^	1,856	1,979
Laverton^	4,915	4,760
Newport	12,916	13,658
Seabrook	5,124	4,952
Seaholme	1,928	2,067
South Kingsville	1,947	2,156
Spotswood	2,604	2,820
Williamstown	13,969	14,407
Williamstown North	1,593	1,622

^ - Territory divided with another LGA

Sister cities

Anjo, Aichi, Japan[7]
Shire of Buloke, Victoria, Australia (friendship alliance)

References

^ a b c "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.
^ "Annexation of portion of the municipal district of the City of Sunshine to the municipal district of the City of Altona". Victoria Government Gazette. Victorian Government Printer. 18 May 1993. p. 1993:1295. (Effective 1 October 1993.)
^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (1 August 1995). Victorian local government amalgamations 1994-1995: Changes to the Australian Standard Geographical Classification (PDF). Commonwealth of Australia. p. 7. ISBN 0-642-23117-6. Retrieved 16 December 2007.
^ VEC. "Hobsons Bay City Council election". www.vec.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
^ "Mayors, Deputy Mayors and Councillors, 1996-2028". Hobsons Bay City Council. Victorian Government. Retrieved 12 February 2026.
^ "Census | Australian Bureau of Statistics". www.abs.gov.au. 11 January 2023.
^ "International Exchange". List of Affiliation Partners within Prefectures. Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Archived from the original on 24 December 2015. Retrieved 21 November 2015.

External links

Media related to City of Hobsons Bay at Wikimedia Commons
Hobsons Bay City Council
Hobsons Bay Community Online Forum
Metlink local public transport map
Link to Land Victoria interactive maps Archived 24 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine
The Times - publisher of Hobsons Bay Times
Interactive map of Victorian local government areas (pre-1994 vs present) - Victorian Government - Digital Twin Victoria

37°51′S 144°50′E / 37.850°S 144.833°E / -37.850; 144.833

[ABSLGA-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] "Annexation of portion of the municipal district of the City of Sunshine to the municipal district of the City of Altona". Victoria Government Gazette. Victorian Government Printer. 18 May 1993. p. 1993:1295. (Effective 1 October 1993.)

[3] Australian Bureau of Statistics (1 August 1995). Victorian local government amalgamations 1994-1995: Changes to the Australian Standard Geographical Classification (PDF). Commonwealth of Australia. p. 7. ISBN 0-642-23117-6. Retrieved 16 December 2007.

[4] VEC. "Hobsons Bay City Council election". www.vec.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 11 November 2024.

[5] "Mayors, Deputy Mayors and Councillors, 1996-2028". Hobsons Bay City Council. Victorian Government. Retrieved 12 February 2026.

[6] "Census | Australian Bureau of Statistics". www.abs.gov.au. 11 January 2023.

[International-7] "International Exchange". List of Affiliation Partners within Prefectures. Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR). Archived from the original on 24 December 2015. Retrieved 21 November 2015.