Idalia flood map & planning overlays

A planning-constraint profile of Idalia (Townsville City, QLD) - 3.47 km², mapped from live council and state overlay data. This suburb is highly constrained.
Profile updated 19 September 2026.

Elevation hillshade with street names, clipped to Idalia's boundary, with the flood, bushfire and environmental overlays drawn on top.

Nearby suburbs, nearest first

How common is mapped flood risk across Idalia properties?

Overlay percentages say how much land is constrained; these figures say how many properties are actually touched in a suburb-wide analysis of 1,899 Idalia properties. No individual property result is identified on this page.

Idalia at a glance

Parcels 1,902 Median lot 710 m² Mapped easements 121 Bus stops 8 Schools in suburb 1

Schools in and near Idalia

Public school-location data shows availability across the suburb. These figures do not rate schools and do not assign a particular address to a catchment.

Inside the suburb boundary

1

1 school providing primary years and 0 providing secondary years. A combined school may be counted in both teaching levels.

Nearest school availability

Primary: inside the suburb

Secondary: 0.28 km from the suburb boundary

Source: Queensland Government school geographic information. Catchment boundaries can divide a suburb and change over time; use the official catchment finder for a specific address.

How Idalia is zoned

Low Density Residential 42%
Open Space 28%
District Centre 11%
Community Facilities 7%
Sport and Recreation 7%
Low Impact Industry 2%

Selling in Idalia? The lot-level zone is the zoning Part 3 of Queensland's Form 2 seller disclosure statement asks for - see our Form 2 planning data guide.

Across its 3.47 km², Idalia is highly constrained by planning overlays. About 100% of the suburb sits within a mapped flood overlay. There is 1 heritage-listed site on record, and the dominant land-use zone is Low Density Residential. The terrain is largely flat, and the median lot measures about 710 m² across 1,902 parcels.

Recent development applications in Idalia

Applications are counted across the whole gazetted suburb from the public Townsville City Council register. No application address or individual property is published here.

Submitted in the past 12 months

60

Latest included submission: 7 September 2026.

Previous 12 months: 59 (2% higher in the latest period).

Common application types

  • Material change of use: 12

Counts depend on applications that the council publishes and that can be assigned to a suburb. Categories can overlap when one application covers several types. Totals below five and their latest dates are suppressed. Register last synchronised 20 September 2026. Check the official council register.

Who lives in Idalia

Census 2021 figures published by the ABS for the Idalia suburb boundary itself, not a wider region.

Population
4,563
usual residents, 2021
Median age
32
years
Median household income
$2,524
per week, Townsville City suburb typical $1,510
Median rent
$400
per week, Townsville City suburb typical $291
Median mortgage
$1,920
per month
Household size
2.7
people, average

Socio-economic standing

ABS SEIFA 2021 ranks every Australian suburb. Decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth of the country, decile 10 the least.

Advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD) Decile 10
most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Score 1081, and decile 10 within Queensland. The national average is 1000.

Relative disadvantage (IRSD) Decile 10
most disadvantagedleast disadvantaged

Age profile

Share of Idalia's 4,563 residents in each ABS age band.

0-4 5.5%
5-14 15.1%
15-19 6.2%
20-24 10.1%
25-34 16.7%
35-44 15.5%
45-54 13.9%
55-64 7.8%
65-74 5.2%
75-84 2.8%
85+ 1.2%

Population trend, 2001 to 2025

Estimated resident population of Oonoonba, the wider ABS statistical area containing Idalia. There is no annual population series published at suburb level, so this describes the surrounding area rather than Idalia itself.

1,937 in 2001 to 7,544 in 2025, up 289%.

Source: ABS Census 2021 and SEIFA 2021 (Suburbs and Localities), Regional Population (SA2), CC BY 4.0. Small counts are randomly adjusted by the ABS.

Idalia data sources and coverage

“Not mapped” means we hold no source layer for this suburb - never an all-clear.

DatasetCoveragePublisher
Flood mappingMappedthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Bushfire-prone mappingMappedthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
ZoningMappedthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Heritage and environmentMapped where publishedthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data
Aircraft noise contours (ANEF)Not heldthe relevant council planning scheme and Queensland Government spatial data, Defence
DemographicsAvailableAustralian Bureau of Statistics (2021 Census and SEIFA)
School availabilityAvailableQueensland Government
Development applicationsAvailable as suburb totalsTownsville City Council

Profile last materially updated 19 September 2026. See the methodology and full source list. Source data changes over time and critical decisions should be checked with the responsible authority.

Check a specific Idalia address

See exactly which overlays touch a single property - the interactive map is free. Need it on paper? A full planning PDF is just $9.

Published flood models are held over parts of Idalia. The free check tells you whether one reaches an address; where it does, a Flood Model Report is +$9 with the planning report.

The Terrain Report shows the fall of the block - contours, cross sections and a 3D model of the lot (+$9 with the planning report).

Building or pricing a slab? The $119 geotechnical desktop report covers geology, soils, bores and an indicative AS 2870 site class for a Idalia lot.

See what's in the $9 report →

Idalia planning - frequently asked

Is Idalia flood-prone?

About 100% of Idalia falls within a mapped flood overlay, against the council-wide suburb average of 39%. Across the suburb, 0% of the 1,899 properties we analysed carry some level of mapped flood risk.

Is Idalia bushfire-prone?

Bushfire mapping covers Idalia and little to none of it is mapped as bushfire-prone (the Townsville City average is 50%).

What is the zoning in Idalia?

The dominant planning zone in Idalia is Low Density Residential, though the suburb also includes Open Space and District Centre.

Does Idalia have heritage-listed places?

Idalia has 1 heritage-listed place on record.

Is Idalia hilly or flat?

Idalia is largely flat: the median ground slope is about 1%. Ground level runs from roughly 4 m to 6 m AHD across the suburb.

What is the typical lot size in Idalia?

Across 1,902 surveyed parcels in Idalia, the median lot size is about 710 m². There are also 121 registered easements mapped in the suburb.

Does Idalia have a train station?

There is no train station inside Idalia itself. The suburb is served by 8 bus stops.

What is the population of Idalia?

At the 2021 Census Idalia had 4,563 usual residents, with a median age of 32 and an average household size of 2.7 people. The wider Oonoonba statistical area, which contains Idalia, went from 1,937 people in 2001 to 7,544 in 2025, up 289%.

Is Idalia an advantaged suburb?

On the ABS SEIFA 2021 index of relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage (IRSAD), Idalia scores 1081 and sits in decile 10 of 10 nationally and decile 10 within Queensland (decile 1 is the most disadvantaged tenth, decile 10 the least).

What is the median household income in Idalia?

Median household income in Idalia was $2,524 a week at the 2021 Census, against $1,510 for the typical suburb in Townsville City. Median rent was $400 a week and the median mortgage repayment $1,920 a month.

Compare nearby suburbs

Nearby suburbDistanceFlood mappedBushfire-prone
Rosslea 1.4 km 100% <1%
Oonoonba 1.4 km 100% 0%
Cluden 2.3 km 100% 12%
Hermit Park 2.5 km 100% 0%
Wulguru 2.5 km 18% 32%
Mysterton 2.7 km 100% 1%
Mundingburra 2.8 km 100% 18%
Annandale 2.9 km 72% 15%
Railway Estate 3.3 km 100% 0%
Hyde Park 3.5 km 100% 0%

See all Townsville City suburb profiles →