Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Local Govt | National News Video | Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Search

 

Average rates increase of only 1.9% over next 10 years


Average annual rates increase of only 1.9% over next 10 years.

Ratepayers are looking at a projected 1.9% increase annually over the next decade and our external debt reducing to a level of only $4M or less.

This news was delivered to Council this week as it endorsed its Draft Long Term Plan (LTP) consultation document, which will go out for public consultation in March.

This coming year the average rates will increase by 3.6% - but it still won't be what ratepayers in a lot of areas were paying back in 2010 - and will average over the next 10 years to an annual 1.9% increase.

The rates increase for this coming financial year comes after a well-signalled move that $46.6M of unpaid debt relating to our three eastern seaboard wastewater plants is moved from potential future development to existing ratepayers.

"We had no choice but transfer this debt to the current ratepayer as we do not envisage the numbers of new ratepayers arriving to pay it off," says David Hammond, Thames-Coromandel District Council Chief Executive.

"A lot of this can be attributed to recession which hit the Coromandel in 2009 and if this situation changes in the future we will most certainly revisit it. But in the meantime it is the prudent thing to do," he says.

"Meanwhile the reduction of our external debt over the next decade to a level of only $4M or less, ( a reduction of $50M since 2010), and the steady building of infrastructure reserves, puts us in a sound fiscal position so that if there are any exceptional risks or surprises, we can deal with it," says Mayor Glenn Leach." That's just common sense."

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

Councillors were informed that, average property rates still remain well under 2010 rate levels in many areas of the District. Residential properties in most parts of Coromandel will enjoy rate levels lower than 2010 for five to seven years. The picture is even better for commercial properties whose average rates will remain under 2010 rate levels for more than fifteen years

Here's a few examples:

Back in 2010 if you had a residential property in Thames with a land value (LV) of $140k your average rates were $2,243. In our draft LTP you won't be paying more than that until 2017/2018 (eight years) when the average rate is $2,297.
Back in 2010 if you had a rural property in Thames with a LV of $4.2m you paid an average $12,863 in rates. Under our draft LTP your average rates are still less than that after 15 years (2024/2025) when it hits an average of $9,332.
In Coromandel a residential property with a LV of $225k was paying an average rate of $2,528 back in 2010. It will only be eight years later that it returns to a similar rate of $2,560 in 2017/2018.
In Tairua-Pauanui in 2010 a residential property with a LV of $400k was paying an average rate of $2,730. It returns to an average rate of $2,788 by 2017/18 (eight years).
The full table for the Average District Rate can be viewed here.


"Our rates and debt position is really good news as it tells us the story of where we've come from," says Mayor Glenn Leach. "To now only get back to the rate you were paying seven years ago - at the earliest - is extraordinary in local government terms. This data proves that what this Council has implemented is really working."

How have we been able to keep rates down in the past five years?

In 2010-2011 we began implementing reforms which included an organisational restructure as well as streamlining processes and reducing operational costs.

We have renegotiated external contracts and brought more roles in-house, if it can be shown that it can save money and create efficiencies. We have also partnered with other Councils to reduce costs (our Kerbside rubbish/recycling is an example of this) to reduce operational expenditure.

"If we can do a project well with a Corolla rather than the Rolls Royce, that's what we'll do," says Mayor Leach. "Case in point is the Thames Valley Water Project where there was $16M in the previous LTP to look at the upgrade of the water supply for this catchment. Under our community empowerment model - as well as having local input in the decision making - we were able to reduce the project cost down to $5M."

We're also looking at how to manage risk better, with projects like our Below Ground Asset Investigation, which will give us a better understanding of the quality and age of our stormwater, wastewater and water pipe networks, allowing for more robust renewals planning.

We haven't reduced levels of service to do this.

While we've been able to keep rates down over the past five years we've still delivered a high level of service for the facilities we maintain which includes:

445 km of sealed roads and 230km of unsealed roads
150 bridges
9 water treatment plants and 48 reservoirs
538 km of water pipeline
10 wastewater treatment plants
128 wastewater pump stations and 6,382 wastewater manholes
13 community halls and centres
2 airfields
1 swimming pool
21 cemeteries
5 wharves and 9 all tide boat ramps
37 playgrounds
83 public toilets
In the past 12 months we have:

Reduced the amount of waste going to landfill from 516kg to 463kg per rating unit
Processed 1285 Land Information Memorandum requests.
Completed a new pontoon and boat ramp extensions at Whitianga and Whangamata.
Carried out 358 inspections on the 286 registered food premises
Received 211 new dwelling consents and on average processed these in just over 11 days
Held three civil defence exercises
Received 995 building consent applications
We've also worked through a number of projects including

Introducing our community empowerment, giving more power back to locals. to make better decisions for locals.
Reviewing our District Plan (currently going through hearings and deliberations).
Implementing a new Freedom Camping Bylaw.
Restructuring Destination Coromandel.
Resolving the health and safety issues at Moanataiari
Rolling out our Kerbside rubbish and recycling service
Completing Hauraki Rail Trail Stage 1 (in partnership with Hauraki District Council).
Introducing positive ageing and disability strategies.
Implementing an Economic Development Strategy.
Implementing a Major Events Fund.
Dealing with Thames Valley Water.
Dealing with the Mercury Bay Multi-Sport Park development overspend.
Having a strategy prepared for the possibility of Local Government Reforms
Reviewing our Development Contributions Policy and stimulating growth..
Why the rates increase in this coming financial year?

We are dealing with a $46.6M debt relating to the Eastern Seaboard Sewerage Schemes which were completed in 2009 and cost $93M.

It was the belief of council in the early 2000s that future developers would pay at least 66% of that cost, and that growth would take off in the Coromandel at a fast rate. That hasn't happened, the development didn't come and instead we were all hit by the recession. We now have an obligation to address the issue. This accounts for 1.8% of the 2015/16 rates increase.

ends

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Parliament Headlines | Politics Headlines | Regional Headlines


Gordon Campbell: On The US Opposition To Mortgage Interest Deductibility For Landlords


Should landlords be able to deduct the interest on the loans they take out to bankroll their property speculation? The US Senate Budget Committee and Bloomberg News don't think this is a good idea, for reasons set out below. Regardless, our coalition government has been burning through a ton of political capital by giving landlords a huge $2.9 billion tax break via interest deductibility, while still preaching the need for austerity to the disabled, and to everyone else...
More


 
 

Government: Concerns Conveyed To China Over Cyber Activity
Foreign Minister Winston Peters has confirmed New Zealand’s concerns about cyber activity have been conveyed directly to the Chinese Government. “The Prime Minister and Minister Collins have expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity... More

ALSO:


Government: GDP Decline Reinforces Government’s Fiscal Plan

Declining GDP for the December quarter reinforces the importance of restoring fiscal discipline to public spending and driving more economic growth, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says... More

ALSO:


Government: Humanitarian Support For Gaza & West Bank

Winston Peters has announced NZ is providing a further $5M to respond to the extreme humanitarian need in Gaza and the West Bank. “The impact of the Israel-Hamas conflict on civilians is absolutely appalling," he said... More


Government: New High Court Judge Appointed

Judith Collins has announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister Jason Scott McHerron as a High Court Judge. Justice McHerron graduated from the University of Otago with a BA in English Literature in 1994 and an LLB in 1996... More

 
 
 
 
 
 

LATEST HEADLINES

  • PARLIAMENT
  • POLITICS
  • REGIONAL
 
 

InfoPages News Channels


 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.