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The Newcastle metropolitan area is the second
most populated area in the Australian state of New
South Wales and includes most of the Newcastle and
Lake Macquarie Local Government Areas. It is the hub
of the Greater Newcastle area which includes most
parts of the Local Government Areas of City of
Newcastle, City of Lake Macquarie, City of Cessnock,
City of Maitland and Port Stephens Council.
Situated 162 kilometres (101 mi) NNE of Sydney, at
the mouth of the Hunter River, it is the predominant
city within the Hunter Region. Famous for its coal,
Newcastle is presently the largest coal exporting
harbour in the world, exporting 88,880,000 tonnes
(87,480,000 LT; 97,970,000 ST) of coal in 2007-2008.
Beyond the city, the Hunter Region possesses large
coal deposits.
Geography
Newcastle is on the southern bank of the Hunter
River mouth. The northern side is dominated by sand
dunes, swamps and multiple river channels. A 'green
belt' protecting plant and wildlife flanks the city
from the west (Watagan mountains) around to the
north where it meets the coast just north of
Stockton. Because of this, urban development is
mainly restricted to the hilly southern
bank.[citation needed] The small town of Stockton
sits opposite central Newcastle at the river mouth
and is linked by ferry. Road access between Stockton
and central Newcastle is via the Stockton Bridge, a
distance of 20 km (12 mi). Much of the city is
undercut by the coal measures of the Sydney
sedimentary basin, and what were once numerous
coal-mining villages located in the hills and
valleys around the port have merged into a single
urban area extending southwards to Lake Macquarie.
Demographics
The metropolitan area of Newcastle is the second
most populous area in New South Wales, and includes
most of the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local
government areas as well as Fern Bay, a southern
suburb of Port Stephens Council. At the 2006 census
it had a population of 288,732. As of 30 June 2008
the population of the City of Newcastle itself was
estimated to be 152,659 while Lake Macquarie was
actually larger with a population of 195,559.
Newcastle is often quoted as being the seventh
largest city in Australia. This is misleading as the
area represented extends well beyond both the City
of Newcastle and the Newcastle metropolitan area.
The area, officially the Newcastle Statistical
District, is referred to as Greater Newcastle or the
Lower Hunter Region, which includes most parts of
the Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Cessnock, Maitland
and Port Stephens local government areas and has a
total population of 493,465. Despite their
proximity, all of the LGAs in the region maintain
their own individual identities, separate from
Newcastle. Newcastle remains the regional hub for
most services.
Modern times
A tram halts outside the AMP building at the top end
of Hunter Street, 1947The Port of Newcastle remains
the economic and trade centre for the resource rich
Hunter Valley and for much of the north and
northwest of New South Wales. Newcastle is the
world's largest coal export port and Australia's
oldest and second largest tonnage throughput port,
with over 3,000 shipping movements handling cargo of
93,000,000 tonnes (92,000,000 LT; 103,000,000 ST)
per annum, of which coal exports represented
88,880,000 tonnes (87,480,000 LT; 97,970,000 ST) in
2007/08. The volume of coal exported, and attempts
to increase coal exports, are opposed by
environmental groups.
The MV Princess of Tasmania (4700 tons) designed and
built at Newcastle State Dockyard at a cost of
£2,000,000 in 1957.Newcastle has a small
shipbuilding industry, which has declined since the
1970s. In recent years the only major
ship-construction contract awarded to the area was
the construction of the Huon class minehunters.
The era of extensive heavy industry passed when the
steel works closed in 1999. Many of the remaining
manufacturing industries have located themselves
well away from the city itself, focusing on cheap
land and access to road transport routes and lack
the concentrated social impact of BHP on the city's
life.[citation needed]
Newcastle has one of the oldest theatre districts in
Australia. Victoria Theatre on Perkins Street is the
oldest purpose-built theatre in the country. The
theatre district that occupied the area around what
is now the Hunter Street Mall vanished during the
1940s when much of Newcastle's cultural appreciation
disintegrated in the very industrial-oriented city.
The old city centre has seen some new apartments and
hotels built in recent years, but the rate of
commercial and retail occupation remains low while
alternate suburban centres have become more
important. The CBD itself is shifting to the west,
towards the major urban renewal area known as
"Honeysuckle". This renewal, to run for another 10
years, is a major part of arresting the shift of
business and residents to the suburbs.
Commercial renewal has been accompanied by cultural
renaissance. There is a vibrant arts scene in the
city including a highly regarded Art gallery, and an
active Hunter Writers' Centre. Recent fictional
representations present a new vision of the city,
using the city's historic past as a backdrop for
contemporary fiction.
The old central business district, located at
Newcastle's eastern end, still has a considerable
number of historic buildings, dominated by Christ
Church Cathedral, seat of the (Anglican) Bishop of
Newcastle.[31] Other noteworthy buildings include
Fort Scratchley, the Ocean Baths, the old Customs
House, the 1920s City Hall, the 1890s Longworth
Institute (once regarded as the finest building in
the colony) and the 1930s art deco University House
(formerly NESCA House, recently seen in the film
Superman Returns). Residents of Newcastle refer to
themselves as "Novocastrians".
Domestic architecture
A heritage area to the east of the Central Business
District, centred around Christ Church Cathedral,
has many fine Victorian terrace houses, embedded in
architecturally "sympathetic" later housing
developments.
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