A draft 6.88% overall rate rise is being considered by the Waitaki District Council, but that is even before councillors add any new projects into the 2009-10 budget today and tomorrow.
The council meeting over the next two days is the first round in setting its budget for the coming financial year - and the rates the district's ratepayers will pay.
Councillors will go through the draft community plan of about 280 pages and make initial decisions on what projects and budgets should be in or out.
But before that they already face a 6.88% rates rise just through the increase in the operating budgets.
At today's meeting, councillors will be told what the additional increase will be from new projects which are being considered for the next financial year.
That includes the equivalent of 17 new full-time-equivalent staff, although four of these could be funded from within existing budgets.
Waitaki Mayor Alex Familton has already warned that he wants to look closely at the council's "systems" - its operating costs.
The council will then meet again on February 3 to consider the draft budget which will go out for public consultation through a submissions process.
Senior policy adviser Andrea Kydd-Law said the council could make minor changes then, but it was vital the council made important decisions over the next two days.
Part of the debate over the next two days will be five issues that staff consider should be the focus for consultation next year with the community and key stakeholders.
These issues are:Waste management: The life expectancy of the Oamaru landfill, kerbside recycling and the future of the weekly "black bag" refuse collection used by only 17% of the community;Community facility development: The quality of the library, North Otago Museum and Forrester Gallery, redevelopment of those facilities, their ongoing operational costs and the importance of other facilities such as playgrounds, the Oamaru gardens and the Waitaki Aquatic Centre;Water: Complying with new drinking water standards and upgrading individual supplies;Roading: How much should be spent on roading and how much could ratepayers afford for improvements;Economic development: Should expenditure be reduced or is there a greater benefit collecting rates to fund initiatives.
This financial year, the council is spending $35.6 million, with almost $23 million of that coming from rates and the rest from other sources of revenue.
