Karana Downs is a rural/residential suburb 23 km south-west of central Brisbane. It is bounded on its west and north by Mt Crosby Road and on its east and south by the Brisbane River.
Originally part of Mount Crosby, Karana Downs was named in 1975 at the suggestion of a real estate developer. At that time, Karana Downs was part of Moreton Shire (Ipswich City), but it has been in Brisbane City Council's area since 1998.
Karana Downs' early history is described in the Mount Crosby entry, and the Mount Crosby primary school (1882, rebuilt 1884) is just within its western boundary. The Karana Downs Country Club golf course was part of the developer's original plan and is entered via College Road from Colleges Crossing on the Brisbane River. College Road also has a small shopping centre, and travel beyond it and the golf course leads to the riverside Kookaburra Park, one of several large public reserves in Karana Downs.
FLOODS 2011
An examination of a street directory shows the open spaces, Brisbane International golf course and gully watercourses. In accordance with expectations, they were flooded in January 2011.
In Karana Downs 96% of dwellings are separate houses, compared with 76% for Australia (2011). Incomes are above average, $2403 per childless family per week compared with $2081 for Australia (2011). Karana Downs' census populations have been:
| census date | population |
|---|---|
| 2006 | 3840 |
| 2011 | 3826 |
Mount Crosby entry
