# City of Knox

The City of Knox is a local government area in Victoria, Australia in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne. It has an area of 114 square kilometres (44.0 sq mi) and in 2020, Knox had a population of 165,147. This municipality is one of only a handful that survived the widespread municipal amalgamations that occurred in Victoria in the early 1990s.

## History

The City of Knox was named after Sir George Hodges Knox (1885–1960), a former soldier and speaker of the Victorian Legislative Assembly. The City of Knox Crest incorporates his family's motto 'Move and Prosper'.
The area which is now Knox was once part of the Scoresby Riding of the Shire of Berwick. On 23 May 1889, the riding was severed to create the Shire of Fern Tree Gully, which extended as far east as Olinda and Monbulk in the Dandenong Ranges. Post-World War II development in the area closer to Melbourne led to rapid urbanisation and population growth—over 21,000 residents lived in the Knox area by the 1961 Census. A plebiscite to determine local residents' views led to the creation of the Shire of Knox on 9 October 1963, which was proclaimed on 16 November 1963 by the Governor of Victoria. It was declared a City on 4 July 1969. By the 1986 Census, the area was home to over 100,000 residents.
On 15 December 1994, the City of Knox was one of the few councils (and one of only four in Melbourne) to survive the statewide amalgamation and its boundaries extended to add the suburb of Upper Ferntree Gully and part of Lysterfield from the former Shire of Sherbrooke.

## Wards

At present, the City of Knox has nine wards, each electing one councillor for a period of four years.
* Baird ward
* Chandler ward
* Collier ward
* Dinsdale ward
* Dobson ward
* Friberg ward
* Scott ward
* Taylor ward
* Tirhatuan ward
Prior to 1994, the Council had three wards, each of which elected three councillors:
* Bayswater/Wantirna ward
* Boronia ward
* Rowville/Scoresby ward

## Council

Knox City Council is composed of nine single-member wards. The mayor and deputy are elected by councillors at an annual meeting in November.

### Current composition

The most recent election was held in October 2024. The current council, as of November 2024, is:
| Ward | Party | Councillor | Notes |
| Baird | Independent Labor | Peter Lockwood | |
| Chandler | Independent | Paige Kennett | |
| Collier | Independent | Chris Duncan | |
| Dinsdale | Independent Liberal | Robert Williams | |
| Dobson | Independent | Meagan Baker | |
| Friberg | Independent Liberal | Parisa Considine | |
| Scott | Independent | Lisa Cooper | Mayor since 22 November 2024 |
| Taylor | Independent | Susan Pearce | |
| Tirhatuan | Independent | Glen Atwell | Deputy Mayor since 22 November 2024 |

## Election results
### 2024

2024 Victorian local elections: Knox :
| Party | Party | Party | Votes | % | Seats | Change |
| | Independent | Independent | 62,340 | 67.69 | 6 | 1 |
| | Independent Liberal | Independent Liberal | 18,863 | 20.48 | 2 | 1 |
| | Independent Labor | Independent Labor | 10,114 | 10.98 | 1 | |
| | Animal Justice | Animal Justice | 784 | 0.85 | 0 | |
| Formal votes | Formal votes | Formal votes | 92,101 | 96.93 | | |
| Informal votes | Informal votes | Informal votes | 2,921 | 3.07 | | |
| Total | Total | Total | 95,022 | 100.00 | 9 | |
| Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | Registered voters / turnout | 111,492 | 85.23 | | |

## Townships and localities

The 2021 census, the city had a population of 159,103 up from 154,110 in the 2016 census
Population :
| Locality | 2016 | 2021 |
| Bayswater | 11,758 | 12,262 |
| Boronia | 22,195 | 23,607 |
| Ferntree Gully | 26,428 | 27,398 |
| Knoxfield | 7,462 | 7,645 |
| Lysterfield^ | 6,663 | 6,681 |
| Rowville | 33,672 | 33,571 |
| Sassafras^ | 1,061 | 970 |
| Scoresby | 6,022 | 6,066 |
| The Basin | 4,416 | 4,497 |
| Upper Ferntree Gully^ | 3,416 | 3,417 |
| Wantirna | 13,818 | 14,237 |
| Wantirna South | 19,271 | 20,754 |
^ - Territory divided with another LGA

## Population

| Year | Population |
| 1961 | 21,281 |
| 1966 | 36,491 |
| 1971 | 56,786 |
| 1976 | 74,456 |
| 1981 | 88,902 |
| 1986 | 104,207 |
| 1991 | 121,982 |
| 1996 | 130,401 |
| 2001 | 141,408 |
| 2006 | 146,740 |
| 2016 | 154,110 |
| 2020 | 165,147 |

## Religion

Religion in the City of Knox (2016)
* CityLife Church – CityLife Church Weblink
* Hills Bible Church- Hills Bible Church is a Reformed Baptist congregation
* Knox Community Baptist Church
* St. Jude's Parish, Scoresby
* Knox Presbyterian Church
* Our Saviours Lutheran Church
* Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church
* The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
* The Salvation Army
* Truth and Liberation Concern
* St.Thomas Anglican Church Upper Ferntree Gully

## Transport

There are a number of bus routes that service the city run by Ventura Bus Lines the city has 4 train stations that are run by Metro Melbourne.