Stormwater costs ratepayers

Villages prone to flooding will better cope with extreme weather when new stormwater networks get into the heartland of the Manawatu¯ District.

Manawatu¯ District Council will release its draft Long-term Plan for public consultation next week.

It asks ratepayers how to fund new stormwater networks, worth $5.6 million, in Cheltenham, Tangimoana, Himatangi Beach and Halcombe.

The stormwater plan also involves improvements to the existing networks in Feilding, Sanson and Rongotea.

The plan proposes to fund the project through spreading the costs over a larger pool of residents, to make it affordable for everyone.

The alternative is a targeted rate that forces only the residents that benefit from the stormwater service to fund it.

The downside is that smaller villages with fewer ratepayers face being slapped with a bill they can’t afford.

With a standardised rate, each household in the scheme would pay $107 in the next year.

This will increase to $140 by 2028.

If the scheme was not standardised, some households could face rates increases of more than $1500.

The plan explained that storms in the past few years caused flooding across the district and exposed deficiencies in the council’s stormwater network.

In some places, there was no network.

It also said extreme weather would become more frequent as a result of a changing climate.

The topic has been a bone of contention among the district’s community committees, with residents reporting flooding was becoming increasingly worse as blocked drains and idle ditches put their homes in danger.

The plan also proposes to shift the burden of rates between rural and urban ratepayers, which has caused angst in the community.

To level the playing field, the plan is to increase rural rates, maintain residential rates at about the same level, and decrease rates for firms in Feilding’s central business district. Those set to be stung by the proposal last month said it was unjust and illogical.

Submissions close on May 3.