City of Bankstown - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The City of Bankstown is a city and Local Government Area in the Canterbury-Bankstown

Canterbury-Bankstown

Canterbury-Bankstown is a general term used to describe the area located around the Bankstown railway line. The suburbs of the Canterbury-Bankstown region are not specific to the local government areas of City of Canterbury and the City of Bankstown but includes many of them. The Georges River acts...

region of Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

, centred on the suburb of Bankstown

Bankstown, New South Wales

Bankstown is a suburb of south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Bankstown is located 20 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Bankstown.-History:Prior to European...

.

In 2006, the NSW government released the new planning strategy for Sydney and surrounds, known as the City of Cities plan for Sydney. The plan identifies Bankstown as a 'Major Centre' for the south west Sydney region. Bankstown Airport was also identified as a 'Specialist Centre' and the Hume Highway as part of a potential transport corridor.

History

District of Banks Town was named by Governor Hunter

John Hunter (New South Wales)

Vice-Admiral John Hunter, RN was a British naval officer, explorer, naturalist and colonial administrator who succeeded Arthur Phillip as the second governor of New South Wales, Australia from 1795 to 1800.-Overview:...

in 1797 in honour of botanist Sir Joseph Banks, who travelled to Australia with Captain James Cook in 1770. The area was discovered during an expedition of the Georges River

Georges River

The Georges River is a waterway in the state of New South Wales in Australia. It rises to the south-west of Sydney near the coal mining town of Appin, and then flows north past Campbelltown, roughly parallel to the Main South Railway...

by George Bass

George Bass

George Bass was a British naval surgeon and explorer of Australia.-Early years:He was born on 30 January 1771 at Aswarby, a hamlet near Sleaford, Lincolnshire, the son of a tenant farmer, George Bass, and a local beauty named Sarah Nee Newman. His father died in 1777 when Bass was 6...

and Matthew Flinders

Matthew Flinders

Captain Matthew Flinders RN was one of the most successful navigators and cartographers of his age. In a career that spanned just over twenty years, he sailed with Captain William Bligh, circumnavigated Australia and encouraged the use of that name for the continent, which had previously been...

. The area of first European settlement along the river has been partially preserved as part of the Mirrumbeena Regional Reserve. Bankstown also includes large areas of the Georges River National Park

Georges River National Park

Georges River is a national park in New South Wales , 18 km southwest of Sydney. It is set along the Georges River, and is run by the National Parks and Wildlife Service....

.

Bankstown became a municipality

Municipality

A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...

in 1895, and then declared official city status in 1980 in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

World War II

The Bankstown Bunker was an exact replica of the underground Ops rooms of wartime England, which directed Britain's air defence fighter plane attacks on the invading German Luftwaffe

Luftwaffe

Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....

. Entrance to the bunker was obtained through a concrete passageway which was well screened by a grassy slope; a stairway led to a virtual maze of corridors and hallways leading to various sections. There were two points into to the bunker (escape hatches) which were guarded by military police, and access was gained via the bottom level.

The walls of the bunker could almost withstand a direct hit from a 300 lb bomb. It had all the attenuated fixtures necessary to run a top secret operational defence base. It consisted of three Fixer Stations and one Homing Station

Homing beacon

A homing beacon is a radio or acoustic device that allows the user to track a ship, aircraft, an animal, or another individual. Depending on the beacon, the range can be as short as a hundred metres, or, in science fiction, allow for tracking a ship through hyperspace....

. The bunker was also equipped with its own code room, plotting rooms, two escape tunnels and a radio transmitter room. In the centre of the bunker was a large room of about two-stories in height. This was the main operations room and control centre for all RAAF Missions in the Pacific area.

Geography

The Bankstown City region is approx. 76 square kilometres and has a population density of about 21.46 people per hectare. The boundaries of Bankstown City are, clockwise, the Prospect water supply pipeline and Liverpool Road (also known as Hume Highway

Hume Highway

The Hume Highway/Hume Freeway is one of Australia's major inter-city highways, running for 880 km between Sydney and Melbourne. It is part of the Auslink National Network and is a vital link for road freight to transport goods to and from the two cities as well as serving Albury-Wodonga and...

) along the north, Roberts Road, Juno Parade, Koala Road, Punchbowl Road, Canterbury Road and the Salt Pan Creek

Salt Pan Creek

Salt Pan Creek is a small creek located in the Salt Pan Creek catchment area, in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located between the suburbs of Padstow and Riverwood and feeds into the Georges River. The catchment area covers about 26km2, with 11.7km2 of this...

along the east, the Georges River

Georges River

in the south and the Georges River, Prospect Creek, the Hume Highway and Woodville Road along the west. Salt Pan Creek

Salt Pan Creek

is a saltmarsh and mangrove swamp that extends from Canterbury Road to Georges River

Georges River

.

Paul Keating Park, in the centre of Bankstown, stands on the old site of the Council Administration building, which burned down in an accidental fire in 1997. The Park is used for a variety of concerts and festivals (including the annual Bankstown Christmas Carols), and is otherwise a large playing field. Nowadays, all of the council operations are contained in the Civic Tower, adjacent to the Park. Bankstown Town Hall faces opposite.

Politics

Bankstown City Council is composed of twelve councillors elected proportionally. The city is divided into four wards, each electing four councillors. The mayor not directly elected. The current makeup of the council is as follows:

Party		Councillors
	Australian Labor Party Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	7
	Liberal Party of Australia Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...	4
	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...	1
	Total	12

The current council, elected in 2008, is:

Ward	East Ward		Tania Mihailuk Tania Mihailuk Tania Mihailuk is an Australian politician. She has been an Australian Labor Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly since March 2011, representing the electorate of Bankstown. She became to the first woman to represent Bankstown in its 80+ year history...	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	Mayor
	Naji Najjar	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
	Khal Asfour	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...	Deputy Mayor
North Ward		Pam Gavin	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
		Alex Kuskoff	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
		Michael Tadros	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
South Ward		Linda Downey	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
		Glenn Brookes Glenn Brookes Glenn Edward Brookes MP, an Australian politician, is a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly representing East Hills for the Liberal Party of Australia since 2011.-Early years and background:...	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
		Max Parker	Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
West Ward		Ian Stromborg	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
		Glen Waud	Liberal Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
		Allan Winterbottom	Labor Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...

Economy

The local economy in Bankstown City is fairly diverse. There is a large number of manufacturing businesses in around Bankstown. There is also a large number of service and administrative jobs, particularly in the CBD.

Some large businesses are established in the Bankstown City area including: Fairfax Media

Fairfax Media

Fairfax Media Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The group's operations include newspapers, magazines, radios and digital media operating in Australia and New Zealand. Fairfax Media was founded by the Fairfax family as John Fairfax and Sons, later to become John...

Printers print The Sydney Morning Herald

The Sydney Morning Herald

The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...

and The Sun-Herald

The Sun-Herald

The Sun-Herald is an Australian tabloid newspaper published on Sundays in Sydney by Fairfax Media. It is the Sunday counterpart of The Sydney Morning Herald. In the 6 months to September 2005, The Sun-Herald had a circulation of 515,000...

and the News Limited

News Limited

News Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...

Printers print The Australian

The Australian

The Australian is a broadsheet newspaper published in Australia from Monday to Saturday each week since 14 July 1964. The editor in chief is Chris Mitchell, the editor is Clive Mathieson and the 'editor-at-large' is Paul Kelly....

, The Daily Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph (Australia)

The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...

and The Sunday Telegraph

The Daily Telegraph (Australia)

, both at Chullora. Bankstown Airport

Bankstown Airport

Bankstown Airport is a general aviation airport and business park located in the City of Bankstown, from the central business district of Sydney, Australia...

and the surrounding industrial areas in Revesby

Revesby

-England:*Revesby, Lincolnshire, a civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire**Revesby Abbey, a Cistercian monastery located near the village...

and Milperra are centres of economic activity. Airtex Aviation

Airtex Aviation

Avtex Air Services Pty Ltd, trading as Airtex Aviation, is an Australian aircraft charter company with its head office in a hangar on the grounds of Bankstown Airport in the City of Bankstown, Sydney...

has its head office on the grounds of the airport.

Approximately 61,000 people work within the city, over 2 thirds of which come from elsewhere, and just under a third of workers live in the city itself.

Retail

There are a wide variety of commercial shops. Most notable is the large and extensive shopping centre

Shopping mall

A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...

, Centro Bankstown

Centro Bankstown

Centro Bankstown, formerly known as Bankstown Square, is a major regional shopping centre situated in the central business district of the City of Bankstown. It has over 310 specialty stores including a number of major retail stores. Opened in 1966, the shopping centre has undergone several...

(formerly known as Bankstown Square). It opened in 1966 and in July 2006 completed its most recent expansion. Other shopping precincts include the Compass Centre and various stores in the Bankstown Plaza, a large pedestrian thoroughfare located near the Bankstown railway station.

There is also a number of town centres in suburbs of the city. Other shopping centres include Bass Hill Plaza and Chullora Market Place.

Population

The Bankstown Local Government Area has about 170,000 people with a population density of 2,283.5 people per square kilometre. Bankstown is known for its multicultural community with a large proportion of the population born overseas. According to the 2006 Census, the most common countries of birth of those residents was Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

7.1%, Vietnam

Vietnam

Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...

6.3%, China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

2.4%, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

1.4% and Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

1.4%. Other than English, the most common languages spoken by the community are Arabic, Vietnamese

Vietnamese language

Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...

, Greek

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

, Cantonese and Mandarin. The most common religion in Bankstown is Catholicism

Catholicism

Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....

, followed by Anglican, Islam

Islam

Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

, Orthodox

Orthodox Christianity

The term Orthodox Christianity may refer to:* the Eastern Orthodox Church and its various geographical subdivisions...

and Buddhism

Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...

Education

Bankstown is home to the University of Western Sydney

University of Western Sydney

The University of Western Sydney, also known as UWS, is a multi-campus university in the Greater Western region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

Bankstown Campus. The Campus is located in Milperra, about 5–10 minutes drive from the Central Business District of Bankstown. The University is the main UWS Campus for arts, linguistics and humanities. There are a number of TAFE Colleges in the city, with one located within the city itself. There is also a number of senior colleges. Bankstown has numerous public and private schools including Catholic and Islamic Schools in the city.

Bankstown's first public school was built in 1880. In 1882 49 boys and 36 girls were enrolled, and upkeep expenses totalled 219 pounds, eight shillings and 11 pence. The school's first headmaster was Dugald McLeod who taught at the school until 1912. The school was demolished in 1924 due to the development of North Bankstown School in the same year.

Events

Bankstown Town Hall, in the City Centre, holds a number of entertainment and cultural events throughout the year. Some of the Major events in the City include Australia Day

Australia Day

Australia Day is the official national day of Australia...

and Carols by Candlelight. Australia Day celebrations are held on the Georges River

Georges River

Foreshore and attract large crowds. Carols are normally held in the City Centre, at Paul Keating

Paul Keating

Paul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...

Park. During April an Autumn Fair is held in Yagoona.

Media

There are two local newspapers, The Express and the Torch. The Torch is more Bankstown City based, whilst The Express covers both Bankstown and neighbouring local government area Canterbury. BFM is a locally based community radio

Community radio

Community radio is a type of radio service, that offers a third model of radio broadcasting beyond commercial broadcasting and public broadcasting. Community stations can serve geographic communities and communities of interest...

station. There is also a local web based news and information service, Bankstown Community Information (www.bankstown.weebly.com).

Sport

The major sport in Bankstown City is Rugby League. There is one local team in the National Rugby League

National Rugby League

The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...

called the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs.

Bankstown City was also home to the Sydney 2000 Olympic Velodrome. The Velodrome now holds International Cycling Events. It is known as the Dunc Gray Velodrome

Dunc Gray Velodrome

The Dunc Gray Velodrome is located at Bass Hill approximately 5 kilometres north west of the Sydney suburb of Bankstown. The Dunc Gray Velodrome was opened on 28 November 1999 and is named after Edgar "Dunc" Gray, the first Australian to win a cycling Gold Medal at the Olympic Games...

. It most recently was part of the Australian Youth Olympics 2007.

There is a major cricket ground in Bankstown, Bankstown Oval

Bankstown Oval

Bankstown Oval is a multi-purpose stadium in Sydney, Australia. It is currently used mostly for cricket matches and has been used by New South Wales, particularly for one day matches. It has also hosted 3 first class games in the Sheffield Shield. Its pavilion is named after Australian Test...

. It occasionally hosts home games for the New South Wales Blues

New South Wales Blues

The New South Wales cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team based in Sydney, New South Wales...

in the Ford Ranger Cup.

Bankstown is home to the soccer team, Bankstown City Lions

Bankstown City Lions

Bankstown City Lions is an Australian football club from the Sydney suburb of Sefton in New South Wales, Australia...

who play in the New South Wales Premier League

New South Wales Premier League

The New South Wales Premier League is the highest state-level men's soccer competition in New South Wales, Australia. Nationally, it is considered one grade lower than the A-League...

.

There are several junior rugby league and soccer teams. Some main fields include the Crest, Walshaw Park, Middleton Park and Graf Park. There is also a Basketball Stadium in the City, and a horse raceway.

The City Council manages four swimming centres, in Birrong, Greenacre, Revesby

Revesby

-England:*Revesby, Lincolnshire, a civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire**Revesby Abbey, a Cistercian monastery located near the village...

and Villawood. The Wran Leisure Centre in Villawood also includes a sauna, squash and tennis courts. There is one public Golf Course, Sefton Golf Course, and a number of private ones.

Parks

Bankstown has 293 parks covering 730 hectares within its city limits. There are 41 sports grounds, 12 community parks and 18 natural parklands. In the CBD, major parks include Bankstown Oval

Bankstown Oval

, McLeod Reserve

McLeod Reserve

McLeod Reserve is a park situated along the Hume Highway in Bankstown, New South Wales, Australia.-Bankstown's First Public School:In 1862 the Church of England School was first opened and was commissioned as a public school in 1867. Bankstown's first public school was built where McLeod Reserve is...

, Paul Keating Park and Bankstown City Gardens. Other major parks include Mirambeena Regional Park

Mirambeena Regional Park

The Mirambeena Regional Park, within the suburbs of Georges Hall and Lansdowne, is a strip of recreational parks and nature reserves bounded by the Georges River to the West and Henry Lawson Drive to the East...

, The Crest, O'Neill Park

O'Neill Park

O'Neill Park is located on the corner of Nobbs and Cooper Roads, Yagoona, Sydney, Australia, within the Bankstown City Council municipality. It is the homeground of the Yagoona Lions amateur football club....

, Terry Lamb Complex

Terry Lamb Complex

Terry Lamb Complex is located on Banool St, Chester Hill, New South Wales. It is the home ground of the Chester Hill Hornets who compete in the Canterbury-Bankstown District Junior Rugby League competition. The complex is named after Terry Lamb who played for the Hornets as a junior...

, Garrison Point

Garrison Point

Garrison Point near the junction of Georges River and Prospect Creek is a historically significant parkland. In 1795, Matthew Flinders, and George Bass, and the boy servant William Martin explored the Georges River to land at what is now Garrison Point and discover the what is now part of Bankstown...

, Jensen Oval

Jensen Oval

Jensen Oval is a Suburban Soccer Park located on Clapham Road, Birrong, Sydney, Australia, within the Bankstown City Council municipality. It is the homeground of the Bankstown City Lions who play in the New South Wales Premier League. It can currently hold up to 8,000 Spectators...

and the extensive parklands around Georges River, among others. The entrance to Georges River National Park

Georges River National Park

Georges River is a national park in New South Wales , 18 km southwest of Sydney. It is set along the Georges River, and is run by the National Parks and Wildlife Service....

is also located within the city.

Facilities

Bankstowns main Hospital is the Bankstown Lidcombe Hospital

Bankstown Lidcombe Hospital

Bankstown Lidcombe Hospital is a Major Metropolitan Acute General Hospital providing 454 beds and caters for approximately 2 inpatient separations per year. It is part of the Sydney South West Area Health Service.-History:...

, a 454-bed Major Metropolitan Acute General Hospital.

Major educational sites include the Bankstown Campus of the University of Western Sydney

University of Western Sydney

The University of Western Sydney, also known as UWS, is a multi-campus university in the Greater Western region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...

, and TAFE NSW

TAFE NSW

TAFE NSW is Australia's largest vocational education and training provider. Annually, the network trains over 400,000 people in campus, workplace, online, or distance education methods of education....

Bankstown College. Bankstown also has a large central library, which services the Bankstown metropolitan area, alongside smaller branches in other suburbs including Padstow, Panania,Greenacre and Chester Hill.

Transport

Roads

The M5 motorway runs through the Bankstown suburbs of Padstow, Revesby and Milperra, and is accessible by ramps on Henry Lawson Drive, The River Road and Fairford Road. The M5 links Bankstown to Sydney International Airport, Sydney City, Campbelltown and other outer south-western suburbs.

Other major routes to the City include Canterbury Road and the Hume Highway. Stacey Street is a main north-south route. There is also a scenic Henry Lawson Drive which runs along the Georges River Foreshore.

Rail

Railway formed an important part of the development of Bankstown. After the extension of the railway from Belmore

Belmore, New South Wales

Belmore is a suburb, of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Belmore is located 15 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Canterbury.-History:...

to Bankstown, rapid development of the area followed - so much so that the commercial centre of Bankstown moved from its former position in Irish Town (Now Yagoona) on Liverpool Road to the vicinity of Bankstown railway station.

Today, two railway lines of the CityRail network

CityRail

CityRail is an operating brand of RailCorp, a corporation owned by the state government of New South Wales, Australia. It is responsible for providing commuter rail services, and some coach services, in and around Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, the three largest cities of New South Wales. It is...

provide passenger services to the Bankstown local government area. Yagoona, Bankstown, Wiley Park and Punchbowl railway stations of the Bankstown line line service the north part of the local government area, while Padstow

Padstow railway station, Sydney

-Transport links:Veolia Transport runs four routes via Padstow railway station:*metrobus M91 - Parramatta and Hurstville*metrobus M92 - Parramatta and Sutherland*Route 927 - between Bankstown and One Tree Point*Route 962 - between Bankstown and Miranda...

, Revesby, Panania and East Hills railway stations of the East Hills railway line service the south. The Bankstown Line will be altered as part of CityRail

CityRail

's Clearways project. The Bankstown Line will now run from Liverpool to the City via Bankstown, or Liverpool to Lidcombe via Regents Park. Commuters on the Bankstown Line will not longer be able to catch a direct service to the City via Regents Park and Lidcombe without changing lines at Lidcombe station.

Bankstown is also served by the Sydney Freight Terminal in Chullora

Chullora, New South Wales

Chullora, a suburb of local government areas City of Bankstown and the Municipality of Strathfield, is located 15 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and forms a part of the Greater Western Sydney region.-History:The suburb of...

. The intermodal terminal is one of Sydney's largest freight terminals.

Airport

Bankstown Airport

Bankstown Airport

Bankstown Airport is a general aviation airport and business park located in the City of Bankstown, from the central business district of Sydney, Australia...

is Australia's busiest general aviation airport. It is located west of the CBD. The Airport site is owned by the Federal government.

Notable residents

Notable past and present residents include:

Tahir Bilgiç
Tahir Bilgiç
Tahir Bilgiç is an Australian comedian, film and television actor, of Turkish descent. He is best known for his role in the sitcom Pizza.-Career:...

, Comedian of Turkish
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...

heritage and actor in the Fat Pizza TV series;
Bryan Brown
Bryan Brown
Bryan Neathway Brown, AM is an Australian actor.-Early life:Brown was born in Sydney, the son of John Brown and Molly Brown, a house cleaner who worked as a pianist in the early days of the Langshaw School of Ballet. He grew up in the south-western Sydney suburb of Bankstown and began working at...

, Australian actor;
Paulini Curuenavuli
Paulini Curuenavuli
Paulini Curuenavuli , commonly known as Paulini, is an Australian R&B/pop singer-songwriter and actress who rose to fame as a contestant of the first season of the television series, Australian Idol in 2003....

, finalist from the first Australian Idol
Australian Idol
Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...

, also attended Bankstown girls High School;
Anh Do
Anh Do
Anh Do is a Vietnamese Australian author, actor and stand-up comedian.He has appeared on many Australian TV shows such as Thank God You're Here and Good News Week, and was runner-up on Dancing With The Stars in 2007. He studied a combined Business Law degree at the University of Technology, Sydney...

, Vietnamese Australian actor, stand-up comedian and actor in the Fat Pizza TV series;
Casey Donovan
Casey Donovan (singer)
-Australian Idol :Donovan transferred to the Australian Institute of Music in Sydney's Surry Hills in 2004 and it was in this year that her stepfather encouraged her to audition for the second season of Australian Idol...

, winner of the second Australian Idol
Australian Idol
Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...

;
Brett Holman
Brett Holman
Brett Trevor Holman is an Australian professional football player. He currently plays as a attacking midfielder or left winger for the Dutch Eredivisie club AZ and the Australia national football team.-Early life:...

, current Australian football (soccer) international player;
Paul Keating
Paul Keating
Paul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...

, former Prime Minister of Australia
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
Terry Lamb
Terry Lamb
Terry Lamb OAM, is an Australian retired professional rugby league footballer and coach. He played 349 games , with Wests , and Canterbury . Lamb was known for his support of the ball-carrier - his ability to be in the right place at the right time netted him 164 tries. This earned him the moniker...

, former Rugby League player for Canterbury Bulldogs
Canterbury Bulldogs
The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership, as well as New South Wales Rugby League junior competitions...

and Australia;
Akmal Saleh
Akmal Saleh
Akmal Saleh is an Australian comedian and actor. He was born in Egypt and arrived in Sydney, Australia with his family in 1975 at the age of 11. He has been performing stand-up comedy since the early 1990s and his live shows have toured comedy festivals both within Australia and internationally...

, Comedian and radio host;
Vince Sorrenti
Vince Sorrenti
Vince Sorrenti is one of Australia’s best known and leading comic entertainers, a respected and successful Australian stand-up comedian from Punchbowl, New South Wales. He is of Italian heritage. Sorrenti performs at many functions and events, such as the AFL Grand Final Breakfast...

, Comedian, also went to Bankstown Boys High School
Jeff Thomson
Jeff Thomson
Jeffrey Robert Thomson is a former Australian cricketer. Known as "Thommo", he was one of the fastest bowlers ever to play Test cricket and was the opening partner of fellow fast bowler Dennis Lillee; their combination was one of the most fearsome in Test cricket history...

, former Australian cricket player
Ian Thorpe
Ian Thorpe
Ian James Thorpe OAM , nicknamed the Thorpedo and Thorpey, is an Australian swimmer who specialises in freestyle, but also competes in backstroke and the individual medley. He has won five Olympic gold medals, the most won by any Australian, and with three gold and two silver medals, was the most...

, World-record holding swimmer and Olympian;
John Konrads
John Konrads
John Konrads is an retired Australian freestyle swimmer of the 1950s and 1960s, who won the 1500 m freestyle at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. In his career, he set 26 individual world records, and after his swimming career ended, was the Australasian director of L'Oréal, as well as campaigning...

, Olympic gold medallist
Melanie Roche
Melanie Roche
Melanie Jane Roche is a softball player from Australia, who won a bronze medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics and 2000 Summer Olympics, a silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics along with a bronze medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Participating in 4 Olympic Games and winning 4 Olympic Medals is...

, Olympic medallist
Andrew
Andrew Tierney
Andrew James Tierney is a member of Human Nature.Andrew and brother Mike are the main songwriters of the group, co-writing the singles, Got It Goin' On, Telling Everybody, Don't Say Goodbye, Whisper Your Name, Be There With You, When We Were Young , Always Be With You and Don't Come Back...

and Michael Tierney
Michael Tierney (Human Nature)
Michael "Mike" John Tierney , is a member of Australian band Human Nature and younger brother of fellow member Andrew Tierney....

from Human Nature
Human Nature (band)
Human Nature are an Australian pop vocal group. The group was originally formed as a doo-wop band in 1989 while the current members were at school together in Sydney. So far, the band has had 17 Top 40 hits and five Top 10 hits in Australia since 1996 when their first album Telling Everybody was...

;
the Waugh brothers: Steve
Steve Waugh
Stephen Rodger "Steve" Waugh, AO is a former Australian cricketer and fraternal twin of cricketer Mark Waugh. A right-handed batsman, he was also a successful medium-pace bowler...

and Mark Waugh
Mark Waugh
Mark Edward Waugh AM is a former Australian cricketer, who represented Australia in Test matches from early 1991 to late 2002, and made his One-Day International debut in 1988. Waugh is regarded as one of the most elegant and gifted stroke makers to ever play the game. His nickname is "Junior" as...

, former Australian cricket players

Sister cities

Sister Cities of Bankstown include:
Broken Hill

Broken Hill, New South Wales

-Geology:Broken Hill's massive orebody, which formed about 1,800 million years ago, has proved to be among the world's largest silver-lead-zinc mineral deposits. The orebody is shaped like a boomerang plunging into the earth at its ends and outcropping in the centre. The protruding tip of the...

, Outback New South Wales

New South Wales

.

Bankstown signed its first Sister City Agreement with Broken Hill in outback NSW on 16 September 1986.
Suita, Osaka

Osaka

is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...

, Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

Bankstown signed its first international Sister City agreement with Suita City, Japan, in March 1989.
Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs, Colorado

Colorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. Colorado Springs is located in South-Central Colorado, in the southern portion of the state. It is situated on Fountain Creek and is located south of the Colorado...

, Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Colorado students in Bankstown signed a new Sister City Agreement with Colorado Springs, home of the United States Olympic Committee

United States Olympic Committee

The United States Olympic Committee is a non-profit organization that serves as the National Olympic Committee and National Paralympic Committee for the United States and coordinates the relationship between the United States Anti-Doping Agency and the World Anti-Doping Agency and various...

, on 13 July 2001.
Yangcheon-gu City

Yangcheon-gu

Yangcheon-gu is a gu, or district, of Seoul, South Korea, located on the southwest side of the Han River. At the centre of this district is the Mok-dong area, which is home to numerous shopping outlets, bars and restaurants, an ice rink, and large residential buildings inhabited by mostly middle...

, Seoul

Seoul

Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...

, South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

.

In 1997, Bankstown signed a Friendship Agreement with Yangcheon-gu City

Yangcheon-gu

in South Korea

South Korea

, resulting in the establishment of youth exchanges and the sharing of information between both local authorities. During a tour in 2001, Bankstown Council delegates met with Korean officials to discuss ways of promoting Bankstown companies with a view to creating new export markets. The Cities exchanged details of Management Planning Processes and inspections of community facilities took place in Yangcheon. A Sister City Agreement was subsequently signed with Yangcheon City in September 2002.
Shijiazhuang

Shijiazhuang

Shijiazhuang is the capital and largest city of North China's Hebei province. Administratively a prefecture-level city, it is about south of Beijing...

, Hebei

Hebei

' is a province of the People's Republic of China in the North China region. Its one-character abbreviation is "" , named after Ji Province, a Han Dynasty province that included what is now southern Hebei...

, China

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

In February 2000 a friendship agreement was made between Shijiazhuang City and Bankstown. The friendship agreement signifies that the two cities are exploring the possibility of venturing into a sister city agreement.

Suburbs of the City of Bankstown

These are the suburbs and localities in the local government area:

Bankstown
Bankstown, New South Wales
Bankstown is a suburb of south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Bankstown is located 20 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Bankstown.-History:Prior to European...
Bankstown Aerodrome
Bass Hill
Bass Hill, New South Wales
Bass Hill, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 23 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region.-History:...
Birrong
Birrong, New South Wales
Birrong, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 22 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region...
Chester Hill
Chester Hill, New South Wales
Chester Hill, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown is located 25 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is part of the Greater Western Sydney region...
Chullora
Chullora, New South Wales
Chullora, a suburb of local government areas City of Bankstown and the Municipality of Strathfield, is located 15 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and forms a part of the Greater Western Sydney region.-History:The suburb of...
Condell Park
Condell Park, New South Wales
Condell Park, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 22 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region...
East Hills
East Hills, New South Wales
East Hills, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 26 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region....
Georges Hall
Georges Hall, New South Wales
Georges Hall, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 24 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is part of the South-western Sydney region....
Greenacre
Greenacre, New South Wales
Greenacre, a suburb of local government areas City of Bankstown and the Municipality of Strathfield, is located 17 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region.-History:This area was once...
Lansdowne
Lansdowne, New South Wales
Lansdowne is a suburb in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Lansdowne is located 27 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government areas of the City of Bankstown and is part of the South-western Sydney region.-History:Lansdowne took...
Leightonfield
Leightonfield, New South Wales
Leightonfield is a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is serviced by Cityrail and various bus routes. Leightonfield's postcode is 2163....
Manahan
Condell Park, New South Wales
Condell Park, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 22 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region...
Milperra
Milperra, New South Wales
Milperra, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 24 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region.-History:...
Mount Lewis
Mount Lewis, New South Wales
Mount Lewis, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 18km south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region.-History:...
One Tree Point
Padstow Heights, New South Wales
Padstow Heights, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 23 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region...
Padstow
Padstow, New South Wales
Padstow, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 22 kilometres inner south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region....
Padstow Heights
Padstow Heights, New South Wales
Padstow Heights, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 23 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region...
Panania
Panania, New South Wales
Panania, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 23 kilometres inner south-west of the Sydney central business district in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region...
Picnic Point
Picnic Point, New South Wales
Picnic Point, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 23 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of South-western Sydney region...
Potts Hill
Potts Hill, New South Wales
Potts Hill, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 21 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region....
Punchbowl
Punchbowl, New South Wales
Punchbowl, a suburb of local government areas City of Bankstown and the City of Canterbury is located 17 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region.- History :Punchbowl is named for a...
Revesby
Revesby, New South Wales
Revesby, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 22 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region....
Revesby Heights
Revesby Heights, New South Wales
Revesby Heights, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 23 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region....
Sefton
Sefton, New South Wales
Sefton, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 23 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the Western Sydney region....
Villawood
Villawood, New South Wales
Villawood, a suburb of local government areas City of Bankstown and City of Fairfield, is located 25 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the Greater Western Sydney region....
Yagoona
Yagoona, New South Wales
Yagoona, a suburb of local government area City of Bankstown, is located 20 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region. Yagoona is an Aboriginal word meaning 'now' or...

External links

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