Belconnen () is a district in the Australian Capital Territory in Australia. The district is subdivided into 27 divisions (suburbs), sections and blocks. As at the , the district had a population of people; became the Districts Act 1966. This Act was subsequently repealed by the ACT Government and the district is now administered subject to the Districts Act 2002.

History

Belconnen was previously occupied by Ginninderra, the former agricultural lands that corresponds with the watershed of Ginninderra Creek. The Belconnen district is named after one of the earliest land grants made in the district during colonial times. Belconnen a land grant totalling was made to explorer Charles Sturt who eventually sold the property to Robert Campbell who owned the nearby Duntroon Estate.

A stone plaque located at the sport fields in , Belconnen's first suburb, commemorates the commencement of urban development of the Belconnen district, inscribed:

The nearby Jamison Centre, the first commercial centre in the district, opened in 1969. The Belconnen Town Centre located on the shore of Lake Ginninderra opened in the late 1970s.

Contemporary governance

For the purposes of Australian federal elections for the House of Representatives, the District of Belconnen is contained within the electoral divisions of Fenner and Canberra.

For the purposes of Australian Capital Territory elections for the ACT Legislative Assembly, most of Belconnen is within the Ginninderra electorate, but the suburbs of Giralang and Kaleen are in Yerrabi.

Location and urban structure

The Belconnen district is a set of 27 contiguous residential suburbs that surround the Belconnen Town Centre, set on the western shore of the artificially established Lake Ginninderra. In addition to the residential development, the district contains some pastoral leasees on its western and south-western boundaries with the districts of Molonglo Valley and Stromlo, its north-western boundary with the state of New South Wales, and its northern and north-eastern boundaries with the districts of Hall and Gungahlin. The natural features of the district are constrained to the east and to the south-east by the Bruce Ridge and the northern slopes of Black Mountain, much of which has been preserved as nature reserves.

Residential and industrial development

The majority of the residential suburbs are predominantly characterised by detached single family homes on suburban blocks, with pockets of medium density housing units or town houses. This is most pronounced in the suburbs of , , , , , , , , and . Within the suburb of Belconnen, a medium density estate, often mistaken as a suburb, called consists entirely of town house and unit developments, such as UniGardens, Belconnen accommodation for University of Canberra students (run by UniGardens Pty). The most recent suburb to be gazetted is in 1986, where infrastructure works have commenced and residential development is in progress.

Within the district of Belconnen, there is almost no 'heavy' industry; however there is some light industry and manufacturing, including automotive repair, plumbing, electrical, building, and similar services as well as small arts and crafts manufacturing and sales outlets. A variety of medical practitioners and veterinarians also service the region. There is an established artistic community which includes aspiring performing musicians, theatre groups and visual artists. A recycling industry, involving organic as well as plastic and metals collection takes place at the Parkwood Road Recycling Estate, on the outermost western boundary of the district, within the suburb of Holt. A poultry farm is situated nearby and is a significant primary industry producer providing eggs to Canberra and the surrounding region.

Retail and commercial development

The predominant shopping centre of the district is Westfield Belconnen, located within the Belconnen Town Centre. Additional local commerce activity includes large and smaller department stores, clothes retailers, car dealerships, homeware, supermarkets, and specialist grocery outlets. There are numerous restaurants and a variety of licensed premises within the Belconnen Town Centre, many close to the shores of Lake Ginninderra. The Belconnen Markets are a fresh food market area within this commercial district operating from Tuesday to Sunday during business hours. Smaller retail shopping centres are located at the Jamison Centre in the suburb of Macquarie; the Kippax Centre in the suburb of Holt; and shopping centres in the suburbs of , Hawker, and Kaleen. The surrounding suburbs were designed each to have their own smaller shopping areas, with small supermarkets, chemists, hairdressers etc.

Within the Belconnen Town Centre is a number of Australian Government department head offices including the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Australian Broadcasting Authority and the Australian Communications and Media Authority. The Australian Taxation Office had offices located in the Belconnen Town Centre in the Cameron Offices.

The Calvary Hospital is a privately operated public hospital, located in the suburb of Bruce. Also in the suburb of Bruce are a number of sporting and education facilities including the University of Canberra (UC), the Canberra Institute of Technology (or CIT), the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), and Canberra Stadium.

Demographics

At the , there were people in the Belconnen district, of these 49.5 per cent were male and 50.5 per cent were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.1 per cent of the population, which was lower than the national and territory averages. The median age of people in the Belconnen district was 35 years, which was lower than the national median of 38 years. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 18.1 per cent of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 15.1 per cent of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 46.6 per cent were married and 10.5 per cent were either divorced or separated.!!2006!!2011!!2016!!2021

  • Belconnen Fresh Food Markets is home to the Giant Mushroom playground, featuring a six-metre high pink, yellow and blue mushroom.
  • Cameron Offices, Belconnen, a partially demolished example of Brutalist architecture immediately south of the Belconnen Bus Interchange on Chandler Street. First building to be built in the town centre.
  • Government offices headquartered in Belconnen include the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, the Australian Communications & Media Authority (ACMA), ComSuper and the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
  • In the suburb of Bruce are:
  • University of Canberra
  • a campus of the Canberra Institute of Technology
  • Lake Ginninderra
  • Canberra Stadium
  • Australian Institute of Sport
  • Calvary Hospital
  • The Royal Australian Navy established a very low and high frequency radio transmitting station in Belconnen in the 1930s, as part of the naval communications base . Belconnen Naval Transmitting Station operated until 2005, with its transmitter towers felled in 2006, and part of the site marked for the new suburb of Lawson.

Education

The University of Canberra is located in the suburb of Bruce and has a student population of approximately 10,000. A Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) campus is also in Bruce.

The Australian Capital Territory Government operates 23 Preschools, 19 Primary Schools, 5 High Schools and 3 Colleges (Senior Secondary Schools) within the District of Belconnen. There are also 8 religious schools and one Government special school for students with disabilities. Prominent High schools include Radford College and Canberra High. Belconnen is also the home to the ACT's only government operated Year 7–12 school, with the dual campus Melba Copland Secondary School located in the North-Eastern suburb of Melba.

References

  • ACTMAPi – the ACT Government's interactive mapping service
  • Video of Belconnen Naval Transmitting Towers being felled (20 December 2006):
  • Tower 1 (72s) on YouTube
  • Towers 2&3 (63s) on YouTube