Glenmore Park, New South Wales

Infobox Australian Place | type = suburb
name = Glenmore Park
city = Sydney
state = NSW


caption =
lga = Penrith City Council
postcode = 2745
est =
pop = 19,200 (2006 Census)
area = 8.3
propval =
stategov = Mulgoa
fedgov = Lindsay
near-nw = Jamisontown
near-n = South Penrith
near-ne = Orchard Hills
near-w = Regentville
near-e = Orchard Hills
near-sw = Mulgoa
near-s = Mulgoa
near-se = Orchard Hills
dist1 = 59
dir1 = west
location1= Sydney CBD

Glenmore Park is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Glenmore Park is located 59 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Penrith and is part of the Greater Western Sydney region.

Glenmore Park is south of Jamisontown and South Penrith with its boundary being the M4 Motorway. The suburbs of Regentville and Mulgoa are located to its west and south, while Orchard Hills runs along its eastern boundary with the Northern Road as its dividing line. Glenmore Park is one of Penrith City's largest and most rapidly developing housing estates. Its development has been carefully planned to cater for the social, economic and recreational needs of its residents.

History

Aboriginal Culture

Prior to European settlement, what is now Glenmore Park was home to the Mulgoa people who spoke the Darug language. They lived a hunter-gatherer lifestyle governed by traditional laws, which had their origins in the Dreamtime. Their homes were bark huts called 'gunyahs'. They hunted kangaroos and emus for meat, and gathered yams, berries and other native plants. [cite web | url= http://www.mananura.com/aboriginal-history-dharugtx.html | title=Dharug Aboriginal History | publisher=Christopher Tobin | accessdate=2007-07-26 ]

European Settlement

Following the arrival of British settlers, the colonial government granted land in the area to one of New South Wales' leading private citizens, Sir John Jamison (1776-1844), who arrived in Sydney in 1814. Sir John acquired further parcels of land adjoining his original property, thus establishing a magnificent agricultural estate which he called Regentville. In 1824, Sir John constructed a lavish mansion on the Regentville estate. Sadly, however, the mansion burned down in the 1860s due to arson.

Henry Cox, another prominent local landowner, also built a residence in the area. He called it Glenmore. Built in 1825, Cox's residence has since lent its name to the modern locality.

The area's land stayed largely rural until the 1970s, when the first residential sub-divisions commenced. Initially, the locality was known as "Peachtree" but Penrith Council later adopted the more historical-sounding Glenmore Park. [cite web | url= http://www.penrithcity.nsw.gov.au/index.asp?id=449 | title=Penrith Local Suburb Profiles - Glenmore Park | publisher=Penrith City Council | accessdate=2007-07-31 ]

Transport

Glenmore Parkway is the main road in the suburb. It connects with the Northern Road which in turn provides connection with both Penrith and the M4 Western Motorway. The M4 provides quick connection to greater Sydney and the Blue Mountains. Westbus provides two bus services in the area which connect Glenmore Park with Penrith. The 797 travels via Jamisontown while the 798 travels via South Penrith. [cite web | url= http://www.westbus.com.au/uploads/docs/penrith-stmarysregionguide15oct04.pdf | title=Penrith Network map | publisher=Westbus | accessdate=2007-07-31 ] A 2008 report in the "Sydney Morning Herald" described the suburb as "designed without consideration of public transport". [cite web | url= http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/they-build-a-suburb-then-find-the-buses-dont-fit/2008/06/15/1213468240458.html | title=The build a suburb then find the buses don't fit | publisher=Fairfax | accessdate=2008-06-15 ] According to the 2006 census, only 193 people in the suburb (less than two percent) used the bus for part or all of their trip to work. The vast majority (more than 70%) travelled by car only. [cite web | url= http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/ViewData?action=404&documentproductno=SSC11415&documenttype=Details&order=1&tabname=Details&areacode=SSC11415&issue=2006&producttype=Census%20Tables&javascript=true&textversion=false&navmapdisplayed=true&breadcrumb=POLTD&&collection=Census&period=2006&productlabel=Method%20of%20Travel%20to%20Work%20(full%20classification%20list)%20by%20Sex&producttype=Census%20Tables&method=Place%20of%20Usual%20Residence&topic=Transport%20Access%20&%20Use& | title=20680-Method of Travel to Work (full classification list) by Sex - Glenmore Park | publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics | accessdate=2008-06-15 ]

Education

Glenmore Park is well-serviced with schools. There are three government-run primary schools: the Glenmore Park Public School, Surveyors Creek Public School and Regentville Public School plus the Bethany Catholic Primary School. There are two high schools: the government-run Glenmore Park High School and Caroline Chisholm Catholic Girls High School.

People

Demographics

The recorded population of Glenmore Park in the 2006 census was 19,208. The residents are primarily young families living in detached houses. The median age of people in the suburb was only 29, much younger than the national average of 37. Sixty three percent are couple withs children compared to the national average of 45%. The majority of houses in the area are detached (95%) and most of them were being paid off (58%) rather than owned outright (16%) or rented (22%). The median income ($669 per week) was substantially higher than the national average ($466). [Census 2006 AUS | id = SSC11415 | name = Glenmore Park (State Suburb) | quick = on | accessdate=2007-07-31 ]

Governance

At a local government level, Glenmore Park is part of the south ward of Penrith City Council, represented by Jim Aitken, Mark Davies, Karen McKeown, Susan Page and Gary Rumble. The current mayor is Pat Sheehy. At the state level, it is part of the Electoral district of Mulgoa, represented by Labor's Diane Beamer. Federally, it is part of the Division of Lindsay, represented by Labor's David Bradbury.

References

External links

* [http://www.penrithcity.nsw.gov.au/index.asp?id=969 Penrith Local Suburb Profiles]