Draft Budget Targeting Vibrant Future
Are you interested in how your rates are used to improve your community? Are you keen to have your say and help shape our city’s future? Then Whyalla City Council wants to hear from you!
Council’s Draft Annual Business Plan and Budget for Financial Year 2021/22 (FY22) has now been released and Council is keen for the community’s feedback.
According to CEO Justin Commons, the plan is critical in enabling Council to continue to offer existing services, while also developing and enhancing the vibrancy of Whyalla for the benefit of residents and businesses.
“Council delivers a wide variety of services – from an airport, library and child-care centre, through to the wetlands, playgrounds and waste collection – which all cost money to run and maintain, particularly those ageing assets that are nearing the end of their life,” Mr Commons said.
“We therefore need an adequate level of income – including our rates – to ensure we can fund all of these services and ensure residents and businesses can be proud of and enjoy what their city has to offer. Most importantly, we must enable a successful, long-term future for Whyalla.”
Mr Commons said a rate increase of about $46 for the average residential property (3.6%) was adopted in recent years to minimise the impact on residents. This was further reduced to only 2.4% last year to help offset the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, in reviewing the latest data, this strategy no longer keeps Council in a sustainable position, but rather places it in a deficit position from which the city now needs to work through.
“If we continue to adopt rate increases of 3.6% or less, our city’s deficit will only continue to grow,” he said.
“No organisation can absorb ongoing deficits, so if we maintain the current approach, this will result in the loss or reduction of services to the community.
“We’ll also have an inability to capitalise on exciting opportunities that enhance the attractiveness and liveability of our city, such as securing first-class sporting events at Bennett Oval; increasing cuttlefish-related experiences; or embarking on our long-awaited foreshore master plan.
“As such, we’re asking ratepayers if they are willing to accept a one-off, additional rate increase to enable Council to continue to grow and enhance the vibrancy of our city. Or alternatively, would they prefer a reduction in what we can offer and the consequences resulting from that decision.
“There will need to be a greater-than-CPI increase(s) and/or a reduction in services at some point in the next few years to achieve a sustainable position. As a result, the community needs to decide what they prefer and when they are comfortable for this change to occur, noting the longer this adjustment is deferred, the larger the adjustment will need to be.”
Mr Commons said if the one-off increase occurred in FY22, it would cost the average resident about $25 (2%) more than the ongoing $46 increase (3.6%), meaning a total increase on average of about $71 (5.6%) for this one year. To put it in perspective, this equates to a similar cost to one takeaway coffee per month.
As well as enabling all current services to continue, this will place Council in a surplus position in approximately year 6 or 7 of the 10-year plan, as well as facilitate:
- The delivery of the Cuttlefish Coast Sanctuary Tourism and Environmental Management Project, creating a huge boost to the tourism potential of the entire region, while offering more activities for locals
- The final year of Council’s three-year, $14 million road and footpath renewal program
- Significant investment to ensure the continued operation of the Whyalla Recreation Centre
- Improvements in customer service
“Whyalla residents are passionate about our city and have expectations of how they’d like to see it enhanced over the coming years,” Mr Commons said.
“Continuing to adopt lower rate increases means these dreams will never become a reality, but rather the City will have to take a step back due to an inability to fund existing services.
“We’ve seen what exciting new projects can do for our city, such as our world-class jetty – which is attracting record tourist numbers – or the Bennett Oval redevelopment, which has put us on the national sporting stage. All our existing services will not even be possible should low rate increases continue, let alone these types of innovative projects.
“Across a year, this ask is relatively small per ratepayer, but it can do a lot for the city. We therefore ask residents to carefully consider what they want from their Council over the coming years and to weigh the benefits of a one-off increase against the negatives.”
Mr Commons said it was critical that the community has their say on how they would like Council to proceed in terms of the FY22 rates. Community consultation is now open, with all submissions and comments needing to be received by Friday 21 May 2021.
A full copy of Council’s draft FY22 Annual Business Plan and Budget – as well as supporting documentation – is available to view at Council offices or by clicking HERE
Written submissions can be made via a survey here. Alternatively feedback can be emailed to council@whyalla.sa.gov.au or dropped of at the Council office.
A public information evening will be held at 6pm on Tuesday 4 May 2021 at the Mount Laura Homestead Museum building, Ekblom Street.
Verbal submissions relating to the draft document can also be made at the General Council meeting on Monday 17 May 2021 commencing at 5:30pm.
All feedback received on the Draft Annual Business Plan and Budget will be carefully considered by Council prior to the adoption of the Annual Business Plan and Budget in June.
The information below demonstrates the high-level impacts of different budget models