Menai is a well known location within the Sutherland Shire south east of the Sydney CBD, and over the past 20 years there has been massive urban growth still occurring today. Most of the urban growth has occurred near the Menai/Bangor area.
The History of Menai goes back to 1840 where only a few permanent residents lived, and little did they know that this small area was going to become a important part in the Sutherland Shire. But in 1979 the first residential subdivision was built and Menai was beginning to develop.
In addition the population of Menai has and is increasing rapidly. On the 30th June 1981 the population of Menai was 6596. By 1991 the population of Menai was 5016,also the fact that the population went down means urban decline had occurred, however there is insufficient evidence on what exactly caused this. By 1996 the population of Menai was 8291, so the urban renewal began again, and has surpassed the 1981 population. By 2001 there were 10773 residents living in Menai. A difference of 5757 people from 1991 and a difference of 2482 people from 1996.
The Government has also helped reduce this problem by renovating old preperties and factories and turning them into houses and apartment buildings.
