Topic 9: What else are we planning?

Let's talk more about the projects and proposals in the draft Long Term Plan

Our projects and proposal list highlights the Council's dedication to community projects, including increased funding for facilities and exploring alternative sports venues. However, balancing spending and funding remains a challenge due to rising costs in infrastructure and services, such as inflation, interest rates, and insurance, alongside growing community expectations for the Council to deliver more with less.

Council is working on a Water Services Delivery Plan to upgrade water infrastructure, which has bumped up costs for all Councils across New Zealand. Central Government's pushing for higher standards but isn't giving much funding, making it tough to balance spending and funding. Rates are the main income source, and we can't keep hiking them up every year. So, Council has had to prioritise the most critical projects, meaning some might get delayed or scaled back due to limited resources.

The Waters projects aim to improve water infrastructure and services, with funding lined up for the next two years. After that, we have assumed that our water services will be delivered by a Council Controlled Organisation (CCO). Managing the 3 Waters (water supply, wastewater, and stormwater) comes with challenges like environmental rules, financial pressures, climate change, asset info, and community expectations. Climate change, especially with more intense weather events, needs big investments and adjustments.

Our roading network and assets require continuous maintenance, with projects scheduled over the next nine years. The New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) funds 58% of these initiatives, enabling the Council to budget and plan for community-benefiting projects, such as the Kakanui Bridge, which had reached the end of its operational life.

The Network Waitaki Event Centre project continues with the goal to be completed by the end of 2027.

The Better Off Funding Program financial support package from the Government has advanced initiatives and projects aligned with the Council’s strategic outcomes. This includes providing healthy, affordable homes and developing integrated health partnerships, contributing to a better natural and built environment, sustainable economic development, and enhanced health services.

Council is always planning ahead, which means keeping up with Government regulations. One of these was to standardise urban household recycling by 2027 and food scraps by 2030. With this in mind, Council agreed to start kerbside recycling and cover the costs over the next nine years. But last December, the Government put these policies on hold to cut extra costs for Councils. So, this project might be reconsidered and reviewed because of these changes.

Read the full list of proposed projects