City of Newcastle

City of Newcastle Newcastle, New South Wales
Aerial view of Newcastle
City of Newcastle
Coordinates	32°55.7′S 151°46.9′E / 32.9283°S 151.7817°E / -32.9283; 151.7817Coordinates: 32°55.7′S 151°46.9′E / 32.9283°S 151.7817°E / -32.9283; 151.7817
Population	161,225 (2015 est)
• Density	862.2/km2 (2,233/sq mi)
Area	187 km2 (72.2 sq mi)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10)
• Summer (DST)	AEDT (UTC+11)
Lord Mayor	Nuatali Nelmes (Labor)
Location	162 km (101 mi) NNE of Sydney
Council seat	282 King Street, Newcastle
Region	Hunter
County	Northumberland
State electorate(s)	Newcastle Wallsend Charlestown Port Stephens
Federal Division(s)	Newcastle Charlton
Website	City of Newcastle
LGAs around City of Newcastle: Maitland Port Stephens Port Stephens Cessnock City of Newcastle Tasman Sea Lake Macquarie Lake Macquarie Tasman Sea

The City of Newcastle is a local government area in the Hunter region of New South Wales, Australia. The City of Newcastle incorporates much of the area of the Newcastle metropolitan area.

The Lord Mayor of City of Newcastle Council is Councillor Nuatali Nelmes, a Labor politician. Nelmes was elected at a by-election on 15 November 2014 following the resignation of Jeff McCloy, the former Lord Mayor.

After a 2015 review of local government boundaries by the NSW Government Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal found that Newcastle City Council was not "fit for the future", it was recommended that the City of Newcastle merge with Lake Macquarie City Council. However, the Minister for Local Government subsequently proposed that Newcastle City Council instead merge with Port Stephens Council to form a new council with an area of 1,045 km² (403 sq mi) and support a population of approximately 230,000. The outcome of an independent review is expected to be completed by mid–2016.

At the 2011 census, there were 148,535 people in the City of Newcastle local government area, of these 49.2 per cent were male and 50.8 per cent were female. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.6 per cent of the population, which was marginally higher than the national and state averages of 2.5 per cent. The median age of people in the City of Newcastle was 37 years, equal to the national median. Children aged 0 – 14 years made up 17.0 per cent of the population and people aged 65 years and over made up 15.4 per cent of the population. Of people in the area aged 15 years and over, 41.6 per cent were married and 12.6 per cent were either divorced or separated.