Parks, pools, playgrounds and potholes – Wollongong City Council's meeting tonight focussed on long-term plans that deliver on the basics and invest in the city's future.
Council endorsed the draft Delivery Program 2022-2026 and Operational Plan 2023-2024, draft Budget 2023-2024, draft Infrastructure Delivery Program 2023-2024 – 2026-2027 and draft Revenue Policy, Rates, Annual Charges and Fees 2023-2024 for public exhibition.
Community feedback will open on the suite of documents later from Wednesday 5 April, with comments closing on 2 May 2023.
"These documents are people-focussed, and show what we're prioritising and delivering for our community in the year ahead,'' Wollongong City Lord Mayor Councillor Gordon Bradbery AM said.
"They cover off everything from big ticket projects like improvements to the Beaton Park Tennis Complex, the Southern Suburbs Community Centre and Library and McMahons St Detention Basin, to the more day-to-day business of Council like investing in our libraries, putting lifeguards on our patrolled beaches and improving the look and feel of village and town centres with footpath renewals and vibrant planter boxes.
"All up, there are more than 630 projects included in the Infrastructure Delivery Program and all of these are about making Wollongong an event better place to live, work and play.''
These draft plans are set at the start of the new term of Council. They're a four-year program and we review the priorities for the year ahead, which are based on the goals within the Community Strategic Plan. The Community Strategic Plan was updated last year.
The four-week opportunity for community input to the current draft documents is an important part of the planning process, and ensures that our community has the opportunity to provide feedback.
"This is a suburbs-focussed plan and it's about what our residents want to see Council doing to manage the $5 billion-plus worth of assets we manage for our community,'' Wollongong City Council General Manager Greg Doyle said.
"Over the next 12 months we'll invest $67M in operations and maintenance of our existing assets, as well as $98M on capital works. It's about parks, playgrounds, pools and potholes and ensuring we're meeting the needs of those who call our Local Government Area home. It is also focussed on the future, with plans to mitigate and adapt to climate change and reduce carbon emissions.''
Within the suite of planning documents are details of Council's proposed rate increase, which is in line with the rate cap from IPART. The Stormwater Management charge is no proposed to change, staying at $25 per property (Residential non-strata), Domestic Waste charges for a 120-litre bin will increase by 5.9% or $24.90/year to $446.50 (up from $421.60 in 2022-23).
Other fees and other charges are proposed to generally increase by 5.9%
"Council has navigated through recent years with financial agility, and we continue to be proactive and responsive in managing this environment,'' Mr Doyle said.
"This budget is about delivering on the basics and investing in our future. We're being clever about how we deliver our services, and listening to, and responding to, how our community uses our spaces and facilities.''
Mr Doyle said residents' rates will be impacted by the application of the new land values which are applied every three years. The values are set by the Valuer General of New South Wales and not Council, and because of the new land values there will not be a consistent change in rates across the city.
"The revaluation of land values doesn't affect the total rates collected by Council – our General Income from rates will increase by 3.7%,'' Mr Doyle said.
"What it does affect is the value of rates between property owners so some people might see an increase, and some will see a decrease.''
Cr Bradbery encouraged residents to take the time to review the documents and provide their feedback.
"This really is an opportunity to let Council know about the plans that are important to you,'' Cr Bradbery said.
"If you're not one to wade through documents, there is also a fantastic interactive map on Council's website that you can use to zoom in on your local area and see what is on offer.''
