in 1954 with the Mackellar County Council offices to the left.
Early history The traditional
Aboriginal inhabitants of the land now known as the Northern Beaches were among the estimated two dozen clans around
Sydney Harbour of the
Dharug language group. These included the Kayamaygal and the
Birrabirragal around what is now Manly to the Garigal further north and around Pittwater, peoples of the
Eora nation. Within a few years of European colonisation, between 60 and 90 percent of the Indigenous peoples around Port Jackson succumbed to the deadly
smallpox contagion of 1789. Much evidence of their habitation remains, especially their rock etchings in
Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park which borders northern beaches' north-western side. The northern beaches region was explored early on in the settlement of Sydney, only a few weeks after the arrival of the
First Fleet. However, it remained a rural area for most of the 19th and early 20th centuries, with only small settlements in the valleys between headlands. While it was geographically close to the city centre, to reach the area over land from Sydney via
Mona Vale Road was a trip of more than .
Local government history The Municipality of Manly was first incorporated on 6 January 1877, being the first local government authority on the Northern Beaches. On 7 March 1906, the Warringah Shire was proclaimed by the NSW Government Gazette, along with 132 other new Shires. It ran roughly from
Broken Bay in the north to Manly Lagoon to the south, and by Middle Harbour Creek and Cowan Creek in the west. It covered and had a population of around 2800, with 700 dwellings. From 1951 to 1980, the
Mackellar County Council operated on the Northern Beaches as an
electricity and gas supplier and retailer as a joint operation of Manly Municipal Council and Warringah Shire Council. Amalgamation of Manly and Warringah councils to form one council for the Northern Beaches was recommended in the final report of the 1945–46
Clancy Royal Commission on Local Government Boundaries, but was not proceeded with in the
act passed in 1948. On 2 May 1992, The Governor of New South Wales proclaimed the establishment of the Municipality of Pittwater, the area of which roughly followed the area formerly known as 'A' Riding of the Warringah Shire.
Establishment of Northern Beaches Council In 2015 a
review of local government boundaries by the
NSW Government Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal recommended that Manly, Pittwater and Warringah merge to form one single council. The government eventually considered three proposals. The first proposed a merger of
Manly and
Mosman councils and parts of Warringah to form a new council with an area of and support a population of approximately 153,000. The second proposed a merger of
Pittwater Council and parts of Warringah to form a new council with an area of and support a population of approximately 141,000. The third proposal, submitted by Warringah Council on 23 February 2016, was for an amalgamation of the Pittwater, Manly and Warringah councils. Of the 44,919 submissions lodged to the Boundaries Commission about all the local government proposals statewide, 29,189 were from Northern Beaches residents (18,977 were submitted for the third proposal); this meant that the Northern Beaches proposals made up 65% of all submissions. Former Warringah mayor, Michael Regan, noted to the
Manly Daily that this was an indication of the level of interest in the Northern Beaches over the future of their local government: "Given the choice of splitting the Northern Beaches or uniting it, the community opted for unity.", while former Manly mayor, Jean Hay, commented that this interest translated into the final result: "Everyone is passionate about the area and we came out and let the powers-that-be know, [...] It must have made an impact because the minister and the premier looked at what the community told them and it was the majority decision to go with a single council." On 12 May 2016, with the release of the
Local Government (Council Amalgamations) Proclamation 2016, the Northern Beaches Council was formed from Manly, Pittwater and Warringah councils. The first Council election was held on 9 September 2017, with Regan was elected as the first Mayor on 26 September 2017. In October 2022, Northern Beaches Council was awarded the A. R. Bluett Memorial Award by Local Government NSW, which recognises the best-performing councils in the state in the previous year, with the mayor Michael Regan noting: "Since amalgamation we have had a huge focus on repairing and renewing ailing infrastructure, delivering long term financial stability and putting the community at the centre of everything we do. It hasn’t been easy but this award recognises the hard work and dedication of both the elected Council and our incredible staff to deliver great outcomes for our community." The chair of the award trustees, Les McMahon, also noted that the Council had "led its community through a number of challenges including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and unprecedented wet weather events. Despite the challenges, Northern Beaches Council was still able to deliver a $76 million capital works program, with a focus on resilient and sustainable infrastructure, while also undertaking a comprehensive community services program to assist all members of its community". ==Council==