Welcome to the Shire of Wongan-Ballidu

The Shire is located in the centre of the Western Australian Wheatbelt and covers an area of 3,368 square kilometres. The localities within the Shire are Ballidu, East Ballidu, West Ballidu, Burakin, Cadoux, Kondut, Lake Hinds, Lake Ninan, Mocardy and Wongan Hills. The Shire consists of undulating land with various soil types and granite outcrops.

Surveyor General John Septimus Roe discovered the district in 1836, seven years after the founding of the Swan River colony. The Wongan Hills name originates from the Aboriginal name ‘Wongan Katta', which translates to ‘Talking Hills', referring to the wind whispering through the hills.

Wongan-Ballidu is in an exciting time of development with progress evident through both Shire and community activity. Opportunity for potential businesses, service providers and new residents is ever present with the Councils Development Officer, a Telecentre and the Department of Agriculture's Research Station at hand for support.

The region offers all the services of a city area while residents can enjoy the advantages of country living including clean air, lack of traffic, low crime and vandalism and a caring community. The community is well serviced with sporting facilities and well-presented, clean streets. Indeed the Wongan Hills townsite offers one of the most livable communities in regional Western Australia. The service industries in the area provide high quality, reasonably priced services and are backed up by competent peripheral industries.  Including a hospital, medical centre, dentist and pharmacist.

The Strengths of the region include:

• the fact that the whole of shire has not been declared drought affected in its entire history
• the relative reliability, financial strength and business diversity of the area
• quality of life including lawfulness and geographical advantages
• reasonable access to city
• the potential for diversification of the industry base
• stability and quality of the agricultural industry and agricultural products of the region
• quality health and medical facilities including a hospital, medical centre, dentist and pharmacist

Recent events

The community is undergoing a sense of revitalization and rejuvenation at present with the hive of economic activity, and this has extended into families and retirees purchasing land and houses for positive gearing and future retirement plans. Other recent initiatives include:

• Work on the new medical centre has commenced.
• Danubin Rise subdivision is underway.
• Shields Crescent subdivision is underway.
• Water (dams) Infrastructure is being acquired.
• Acquisition of land for future land subdivisions are continuing.
• Council at it's July budget meeting agreed to allocate the sum of $1.2m (this comprises of Royalty for Regions and various grants) for the collocation of the Telecentre, Visitors Centre and Art Society work on this project is progressing well.