City of Moonee Valley

The City of Moonee Valley is a local government area located within the metropolitan area of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, on Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Country. It comprises the inner north-western suburbs between 3 and 13 kilometres from the Melbourne city centre. In 2023, the City of Moonee Valley Estimated Resident Population was 126,486, with a population density of 2,935 persons per square km, based on the 2023 Census.

History


Moonee Valley was formed in December 1994 after the merger of the City of Essendon and eastern parts of the City of Keilor.

The original council logo from 1994 was replaced in February 2010.

Exchange prefixes in the city are 937x, 837x, 933x or 833x (the latter left over from the old City of Keilor).

Features
The Moonee Valley is a culturally diverse region with a substantial residential population and various commercial set-ups and industries. It comprises the Moonee Valley Racecourse, Essendon Airport and has several shopping precincts, restaurants, parks and offices. It is well connected and easily accessible through trams and the Craigieburn train line. It is also a thriving business centre, with close to 10,000 businesses operating in the region.

Wards
The City of Moonee Valley has three wards: Buckley, Myrnong and Rose Hill.

Buckley Ward comprises Essendon Fields, Essendon North, Strathmore, Aberfeldie, most of Essendon and Strathmore Heights, and parts of Moonee Ponds and Essendon West.

Myrnong Ward comprises Ascot Vale, Flemington, Travancore, most of Moonee Ponds and part of Essendon.

Rose Hill Ward comprises Avondale Heights, Keilor East, Airport West, Niddrie, most of Essendon West and part of Strathmore Heights.

Current composition
Councillors are elected from the three multi-member wards, each electing three members, for a total of nine councillors. The current council was elected in October 2020, as its composition is:

Mayors
The current Mayor is Pierce Tyson and the Deputy Mayor is Narelle Sharpe. They were elected by council in October 2023 and will serve the 2023/24 year.

2008−2024 (three wards)
====Buckley Ward====

Libraries
The City of Moonee Valley has five libraries:


 * Ascot Vale Library
 * Avondale Heights Library and Learning Centre
 * Flemington Library
 * Niddrie Library
 * Sam Merrifield Library (Moonee Ponds)

The libraries offer uncommon services such as a seed library, where customers can take home seeds to grow plants or flowers. In 2024, Moonee Valley Libraries removed overdue fines for late return of items. The change was made to remove a potential barrier of people using the library services.

Townships and localities
At the 2021 census, the city had a population of 121,851 up from 116,671 at the 2016 census.

^ - Territory divided with another LGA