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Shire of Colac Otway
Victoria
Shire of Colac Otway; Victoria
	Location in Victoria
Population	21,503 (2018)
• Density	6.2545/km2 (16.1991/sq mi)
Established	1994
Gazetted	23 September 1994
Area	3,438 km2 (1,327.4 sq mi)
Mayor	Cr Kate Hanson
Council seat	Colac
Region	Barwon South West
State electorate(s)	Polwarth
Federal division(s)	Wannon
Website	Shire of Colac Otway
	LGAs around Shire of Colac Otway:

The Shire of Colac Otway is a local government area in the Barwon South West region of Victoria, Australia, located in the south-western part of the state. It covers an area of 3,438 square kilometres (1,327 sq mi) and in June 2018 had a population of 21,503.^[1] It includes the towns of Apollo Bay, Beeac, Beech Forest, Birregurra, Colac, Cressy, Forrest, Johanna, Kennett River, Lavers Hill, Warrion and Wye River. It came into existence on 23 September 1994 through the amalgamation of the local government areas of City of Colac, Shire of Colac, part of the Shire of Otway and part of the Shire of Heytesbury.^[2]

The Shire is governed and administered by the Colac Otway Shire Council; its seat of local government and administrative centre is located at the council headquarters in Colac, it also has a service centre located in Apollo Bay. The Shire is named after the combination of the names for the former City of Colac, and Shires of Colac and Otway, from which the majority of the LGA was formed. The name Colac is used for both the main urban settlement and the lake, Lake Colac, which are located in the north-centre of the LGA. Colac is also the most populous urban centre in the LGA with a population of almost 12,000.^[3] The name Otways is used for the major geographical features located in the south of the LGA, which are The Otways and Cape Otway. Cape Otway was originally named by Lieutenant James Grant who was the commander of the vessel, the Lady Nelson.^[4] He named it after Captain William Otway who was one of the commissioners of the Transport Board, on 7 December 1800.^[4]

History

The Colac district is the traditional land for the Gulidjan people and was known as “Kolak” or “Kolakgnat” which means ‘belonging to sand’.^[5] The Gulidjan people are of the Easter Maar Nation.^[5]

The earliest European settlers arrived in the district in the 1830s and settled around Lake Colac.^[6]

Council

Current composition

The council is composed of seven councillors elected to represent an unsubdivided municipality. In order of election in 2020, they are:^[7]

Ward		Councillor
Unsubdivided	Independent	Tosh-Jake Finnigan
	Independent	Chris Potter
	Independent	Graham Lesie Costin
	Independent	Kate Hanson
	Greens	Stephen Hart
	Independent	Jamie Bell
	Independent	Margaret White

Former Wards (1996–2008)

Colac – had three councillors
Murray – had one councillor
Otway – had one councillor
Warrion – had one councillor

Administration and governance

The council meets in the council chambers at the council headquarters in the Colac Municipal Offices, which is also the location of the council's administrative activities. It also provides customer services at both its administrative centre in Colac, and its service centre in Apollo Bay.

Election results

2024

2024 Victorian local elections: Colac Otway^[9]^[10]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Jason Schram (elected 1)	2,188	15.81	+15.81
	Independent	Chris Potter (elected 2)	1,613	11.65	–0.29
	Independent	Zoe Hudgell (elected 3)	1,280	9.25	+9.25
	Independent	Mick McCrickard (elected 6)	1,051	7.59	+7.59
	Independent	Phil Howard (elected 4)	1,033	7.46	+7.46
	Independent	Charlie Buchanan (elected 5)	1,000	7.22	+7.22
	Independent	Tosh-Jake Finnigan	814	5.88	–0.77
	Independent	Mick Fischer	798	5.77	+5.77
	Greens	Chrissy De Deugd (elected 7)	780	5.64	–4.02
	Independent	Nick Lang	667	4.82	+4.82
	Independent	Cheryl Miller	539	3.89	+3.89
	Independent	Rhea Sabine Wigley	438	3.16	+3.16
	Independent	Max Arnott	391	2.82	+0.20
	Independent	Gavin Davies	385	2.78	+2.78
	Independent	Kerrie Thackeray	385	2.78	+2.78
	Independent	Peter Byrnes	161	1.16	+1.16
	Independent	Tina Hill	160	1.16	+1.16
	Independent	John Knight	159	1.15	+1.15
Total formal votes			13,842	93.05	–1.91
Informal votes			1,034	6.95	+1.91
Turnout			14,876	84.83	+0.22

2020

2020 Victorian local elections: Colac Otway^[11]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent Liberal	Joe McCracken (elected 1)	3,637	22.98
	Independent	Chris Potter (elected 2)	1,889	11.94
	Independent	Graham Costin (elected 3)	1,727	10.91
	Greens	Stephen Hart (elected 5)	1,528	9.66
	Independent	Kate Hanson (elected 4)	1,425	9.00
	Independent	Jamie Bell (elected 6)	1,251	7.91
	Independent	Tosh-Jake Finnigan	1,052	6.65
	Put Climate First	Susan Langridge	832	5.26	+5.26
	Independent	Margaret White (elected 7)	678	4.28
	Independent	Catriona Ebeling	597	3.77
	Independent	Max Arnott	414	2.62
	Independent	Maxwell Clark	269	1.70
	Independent	Carol Lofts	264	1.67
	Independent	Mark McCallum	262	1.64
Total formal votes			15,825	94.96
Informal votes			840	5.04
Turnout			16,665	84.61

Townships and localities

The 2021 census, the shire had a population of 22,423 up from 20,972 in the 2016 census^[12]

Population
Locality	2016	2021
Aire Valley	0	0
Alvie	132	141
Apollo Bay	1,598	1,790
Balintore	67	59
Barongarook	434	458
Barongarook West	235	291
Barramunga	7	11
Barunah Plains	9	10
Barwon Downs	131	136
Beeac	370	394
Beech Forest	82	125
Birregurra^	828	942
Bungador	62	65
Cape Otway	15	34
Carlisle River^	135	168
Carpendeit^	134	115
Chapple Vale^	36	42
Colac	9,048	9,243
Colac East	217	168
Colac West	81	89

Population
Locality	2016	2021
Coragulac	161	171
Cororooke	310	358
Corunnun	115	119
Cressy^	175	176
Cundare	11	15
Cundare North^	9	10
Dreeite	55	77
Dreeite South	30	28
Elliminyt	2,900	3,260
Eurack	65	43
Ferguson	19	13
Forrest	230	257
Gellibrand	210	230
Gellibrand Lower^	13	19
Gerangamete	105	112
Glenaire	28	33
Grey River	4	4
Hordern Vale	43	44
Irrewarra	345	365
Irrewillipe	125	100

Population
Locality	2016	2021
Irrewillipe East	76	84
Jancourt East^	188	185
Johanna	63	85
Kawarren	166	189
Kennett River	41	74
Larpent	194	200
Lavers Hill	78	87
Marengo	239	272
Mount Sabine	0	0
Murroon	83	95
Nalangil	76	72
Ombersley^	97	93
Ondit	94	101
Pennyroyal^	86	110
Petticoat Creek	0	7
Pirron Yallock^	113	132
Separation Creek	19	28
Simpson^	569	583
Skenes Creek	164	249

Population
Locality	2016	2021
Skenes Creek North	16	19
Stonyford^	51	65
Sugarloaf	14	20
Swan Marsh	121	127
Tanybryn	19	15
Warncoort	130	146
Warrion	198	204
Weeaproinah	11	15
Weering	67	62
Whoorel	18	25
Winchelsea^	1,954	2,456
Wingeel^	23	26
Wongarra	37	47
Wool Wool	38	55
Wye River	63	67
Wyelangta	38	40
Yeo	148	124
Yeodene	121	107
Yuulong	37	49