Dunedin ratepayers should have a 2.99% rates increase confirmed tomorrow, but the city faces complex major issues at the next long-term plan (LTP) round next year, Mayor Dave Cull says.
A full meeting of the Dunedin City Council is expected to set the rates for the next financial year.
The increase this year scraped in under the council's self-imposed 3% target for rates rises.
That was despite an extra $100,000 of spending approved last month, when the council's environment strategy received an additional $50,000 to reduce carbon emissions and enhance Dunedin's environment, as did a study into a district heating scheme for the city.
Mr Cull said in his introduction in the annual plan there was ''a constant tension between maintaining the existing range of services, managing increased costs, investing in new initiatives and projects to take the city forward, and still staying within our limits for rate increases and debt''.
''These issues are complex and will be major issues for the next LTP.''
Mr Cull said last night the council wanted to keep rates affordable and maintain services.
''But we also want to improve the city, and that takes investment and spending.
''That means you're inclined to take on more debt at a time you're trying to reduce debt.''
During consultation for the LTP the council would be asking residents what they wanted to spend money on.
If they wanted more cycleways, or a comprehensive social housing plan, the council would need to determine the community's level of interest in funding those things.
Issues such as dealing with the future of South Dunedin in the face of rising sea levels was ''absolutely'' something that needed to be considered when it came to budgets, he said.
However, it was unlikely the council would have a full grasp of the total costs or even what actions would need to be taken in the next 10 years.
Mr Cull said he supported, for instance, a bridge over the railway lines by the Chinese Garden.
''But it's a new capital project, and there will be others.''
The city faced ''real challenges'' in terms of its housing stock.
How to confront that, and what responsibility the council had, needed to be decided.
Any funding for that sort of thing would also be new funding.
''I can't put a price on it, but I think we need to confront it.''
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Comments
Any word on where the extra millions are coming from for the peninsula bike track? That program is said to be progressing despite the massive miscalculation of costs. Just where is the money coming from?
The ratepayers Keith the ratepayer, who else is going to foot the bill for this moronic cycling lunacy.
yay, some more money for our council to waste on frivolous projects like cycleways and congestion creating traffic realignment - or "improvements" as they are called by our council.
no matter who is in the seat we (including me will cry) but seriously does Dunedin need cycle ways when the money could be spent on better more important things. I would like a jet ski but do I have one, no I have more important things to spend my money on, Cull and the greens will go far the sooner the better for Dunedin because they are taking Dunedin down. I've finally found a person who makes my skin crawl.