History
South Barwon was formed as a road district when it was severed from the Corporation of Geelong on 2 June 1857. It then covered 9 square miles (23 km2) and 600 households. It was incorporated as a borough on 21 October 1863, and became a town on 24 December 1874 when it was almagmated with the Connewarre Road District, and now covered 64 square miles (170 km2) and 1714 people. It was proclaimed as a city on 6 December 1974.
The first council offices were in Mount Pleasant Road in Belmont, opened in 1884 at a cost of 1400 pounds. New chambers were built in 1970, and in 1974 plans were made for a new Civic Centre on the corner of the Princes Highway and Reynolds Road in Belmont. Plans were approved in 1976, a tender was accepted and the first sod turned in August 1977, and on May 24, 1978 it was officially opened. The Mount Pleasant Road offices became a community centre. After amalgamation the Civic Centre was used by the City of Greater Geelong as offices, before being sold to Barwon Health.
On 18 May 1993, the City was abolished, and merged into the City of Greater Geelong, despite concerns expressed by the coastal town of Torquay that it was a separate community of interest from Geelong. The Shire of Barrabool, which had been significantly reduced by the creation of the City and had lost much of its rates base, joined Torquay residents in suggesting the Kennett Liberal government create a coastal shire which united Torquay and Anglesea. On 9 March 1994, the southern part of the City south of Mount Duneed Road merged with the remainder of the Shire of Barrabool and Shire of Winchelsea to create the Surf Coast Shire, which established its administrative centre at Torquay.
Read more about this topic: City Of South Barwon
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