AT next Tuesday’s meeting, Eurobodalla Shire councillors will be asked to consider a package of social infrastructure, community projects and loan funding opportunities that, if endorsed, could form the basis of a notice of intent to apply for special rate variation with the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal.
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If Council endorses the package of projects, it will start another phase of community consultation designed to keep residents informed about the need, purpose and impact of a rate variation before Council makes a decision about whether or not to apply for one in December this year.
Council has been considering a rate variation since 2012 when extensive consultation with the community showed that residents highly valued the programs and infrastructure that Council provides. Residents also said that they wanted Council to be able to maintain its priority infrastructure into the future. At the time 62 per cent of residents and 68 per cent of non-residents stated that they would be supportive of a rate variation of 5.5 per cent to improve local infrastructure and services. However, the decision to apply for a variation was put on hold when the local government elections were held but the option of applying for a variation was retained for a later date during the life of Council’s 2013-2017 Delivery Program 2013-2017.
The projects being considered by Council next week have already been identified as priorities by the community and are those that will deliver broad economic and social benefits.
In addition to being diligent about identifying savings and efficiencies, seeking grants and external funds, Council is still unable to meet the needs of the community in the years ahead with its current rates revenue. The proposal to apply for a special rate variation is one way that it can fund the increasing costs of maintaining, renewing and building its $1.6 billion infrastructure. If Council endorses the projects, it will continue to talk to the community about how the proposed 5 per cent rate variation would impact them. Councillors will then make a final decision on whether to apply for the variation with the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal in December.
The proposed package includes upgrades to sporting facilities, community halls and road projects, the Batemans Bay CBD and Moruya’s library and exhibition centre. It also includes a commitment to ensuring that everyone can enjoy an active and healthy life in Eurobodalla with improvements to the accessibility of playgrounds, viewing platforms at popular locations and toilet facilities.
As well as an extensive list of infrastructure projects, the package also includes a new loan funding strategy where increased revenue would be used to fund the renewal of short lived infrastructure in order to address Council’s annual infrastructure funding gap. Using loan funding for long lived infrastructure and larger works can help Council spread its infrastructure costs over time and ensure that all maintenance, renewals and depreciation costs for new and upgraded assets are covered in Council’s budget.
