Council finance scare
Kingston Park project saddles Kingborough with $5m debt
KINGBOROUGH Council’s financial position is set to take another hit with revelations that the Kingston Park project could saddle the council with up to $5 million in debt.
And to make matters worse, the newly established Kingborough Ratepayers Association says property rates in the municipality will rise by more than 22 per cent over the next four years, and is calling for a rate cap.
With work starting on the $90 million project — which will involve the development of the former 11.4ha site Kingston High School site — the council has prepared a report on how it will conduct Expression of Interest processes for the site during this year.
Consultants have been engaged by the council to gauge the interest of developers for the transformative site — which now even contain a cinema complex — and streamline development on the site when the council’s preferred developer is decided in September.
But in the report council staff warn that there could be risks in this market process and that the council is on track for a $4-5 million “net loss” in seven to nine years time.
Kingborough mayor Steve Wass said it was a worry for the council, and that was why it would again try to obtain Federal Government funding — after the project got $2.8 million from the Commonwealth on the fourth time of asking.
“But for the plan for us to do the work we need to do and get the loans to do the public infrastructure we will sell some of the land,” he said.
“And now we will put our hand up again for the next round [of Federal funding].”
It comes after Kingborough councillors voted to defer accepting a new-long term financial plan after it emerged the council was underfunding its asset renewal budget by $2.5 million a year for more than 10 years.
The Kingborough Ratepayers Association — formed last week — has savaged the long-term financial plan of the council and likely rate increases.
Association president Mervin Reed said this was through a planned rate rise of 4.8 per cent plus the waste management and stormwater levy.
He said a rate cap needed to be imposed on the council as people were not able to deal with such a rise.
“If Premier Will Hodgman and Local Government Minister Peter Gutwein decline to take action to cap the rates and protect the community, then ratepayers should consider this when they go to the polls in early March,” he said.