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

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

 

Consultation Now Open On Wellington City Council’s 10-Year Plan

Wellington Mayor Andy Foster is delighted that the draft 2021-31 Long-term Plan is out for consultation.

“This draft is ambitious, and it centres on the much-needed investment in our infrastructure that our city has been crying out for, and on solving resilience issues,” he explains. “It is investment we need to underpin a modern, dynamic, creative, sustainable city.

“The capital programme is our largest to date, representing a $400 million greater investment than our last Long-term Plan, and this in turn will increase Council debt levels. This does not include the additional $580 million off-balance sheet responses for funding sludge treatment and city housing.

“We are proposing to lift our debt limit from the current 175% of debt to revenue to 225%. We consider this a prudent level because we must maintain borrowing headroom for known but currently unbudgeted investment needs, and for events that are unexpected, such as an earthquake or pandemic.”

This plan sets the direction for the next 10 years, outlines what will be invested in, how much it may cost and how it will be funded. It provides guidance on how Council will make Wellington an even better place to live, work, play and visit as we go into the future.

The plan asks Wellingtonians for feedback on seven key areas:

  1. Investment in Council’s three waters infrastructure
  2. Wastewater laterals (the pipes connecting property to the water main underneath the road corridor)
  3. Funding for cycleway networks
  4. How to fund our commitment to reducing emissions through Te Atakura – First to Zero
  5. Te Ngākau Civic Square funding for future work, especially on the Municipal Office Buildings and Civic Administration Building
  6. How we will fund the repair and upgrade of the Central Library
  7. How we will reduce our dependence on pumping sludge across the city to the landfill and reduce the amount of waste going to the landfill.
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.

Meeting the preferred options in the plan will require an average rates increase of 13.5% in the first year, and an average of 9.9% over the first three years. This equates to an average rates increase of 5.3% (after growth) across the 10 years of the plan.

The Office of the Auditor General has given a qualified opinion on the draft consultation document, which relates to uncertainty around the condition of our water infrastructure and also around the sustainability of city housing solutions.

These issues don’t come as any surprise to Mayor Foster. “We have known for some time that solutions are needed for the financial sustainability of our city housing programme, and the lack of knowledge around infrastructure was identified by the 3 Waters Mayoral Taskforce,” he adds. “The budget provides for Wellington Water to address this through an enhanced condition assessment programme.”

Deputy Mayor Sarah Free encourages people to come and talk about the major issues facing our city. “We have a number of opportunities for Wellingtonians to give us feedback in person, including two expos at Te Papa and a series of community pop-up events,” she says. “The more people we speak to, the better informed the final plan will be, and the better equipped Wellington will be to meet the demands of the next 10 years.”

The schedule is available on the Let’s Talk Wellington website: https://www.letstalk.wellington.govt.nz/hub-page/long-term-plan

It's important that Wellingtonians have their say on these proposals. People can have their say from 6 April to 10 May in a number of ways:

Freepost 2199

Long-term Plan

PO Box 2199

Wellington 6140

  • Drop off a completed submission form to Arapaki Manners Service Centre at 12 Manners Street or at any library
  • Make an oral submission.

© 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.