NSW · Northern Rivers · Local council, made simple
Lismore City Council
The regional service centre of the NSW Northern Rivers — around 43,800 people across the Lismore CBD, Goonellabah and villages like Nimbin, Clunes and Dunoon, and home to Southern Cross University. The council runs the local services you use every week — waste, roads, water, libraries, parks, development — and sets your rates, while leading recovery after the record February 2022 flood. Here's the snapshot, then the stuff that affects your week.
Everyday essentials
The things people actually need from the council — fast.
Get to know your council
The basics, in one tap — open any card for key facts and a link to the official source.
This year's rate rise, how it compares across NSW, and why bills differ.
2025–26 rate peg: 3.9%
Open →Budget & financesHow financially healthy the council is, measured against official benchmarks.
Meets 5 of 9 OLG financial benchmarks
Open →Crime & safetyLismore's recorded crime rates, side by side with the NSW average.
Recorded rates above the NSW average across the 12 major offences
Open →Mayor & councillorsWho represents you — and where to read their official profiles.
Mayor: Steve Krieg (Independent)
Open →Elections & votingWhen the next council election is, and how voting works.
Next election: Sat 9 Sep 2028
Open →Contact & servicesHow to reach the council and report a problem.
Customer service: 1300 87 83 87
Open →City profileThe basics: how many people live here, how big the area is.
Population: ~43,800 (2023–24)
Open →What's happening
3 updatesRecent items from Lismore City Council's public channels, in plain language.
- Have your say
Council consults on a possible special rate variation
The council ran a rates consultation in 2025 on a possible special rate variation to fund roads and economic development in the Lismore LGA. Any special variation would need to be applied for and approved by IPART before it could raise rates above the annual peg.
What this means for you: This could affect future rates bills above the standard rate peg; the council's Your Say page sets out the proposal and how to have your say.
- Policy
IPART sets Lismore's 2026–27 rate peg at 3.1%
IPART set Lismore City Council's rate peg for 2026–27 at 3.1% (with a 0% population factor). The rate peg caps the increase in the council's total ordinary rates income, not each individual bill.
What this means for you: It sets the ceiling for how much the council can raise its total rates income in 2026–27; water, sewer and waste charges are billed separately, and any special variation would be additional.
- Development
Future use of flood buyback land split into four precincts
The council and NSW Government revealed that flood-affected buyback land across the Lismore CBD, North, South and East Lismore will be planned as four precincts, with the Lismore Centre plan starting from early 2026 and all four to be completed by early 2027.
What this means for you: If you live near the flood-affected areas, this shapes what can be built on land bought back after the 2022 floods (housing is no longer permitted there); community engagement runs through 2026 and you can follow it on the council's Your Say page.
Source: Your Say Lismore — Future use of buyback land: precinct planning
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