Community boards grapple with cuts

FULL cuts to grants to the Roxburgh Community Pool are offlimits in the Teviot Valley ward’s operating budget for the 202021 annual plan, according to its community board.

All Central Otago’s community boards met online this week.

The Teviot Valley Community Board broke ranks by refusing to accept budgets revised in the wake of Covid19 ‘‘as read’’ to protect the pool.

Board members argued on Wednesday the proposed budget cuts could leave the township without the funds to run the pool.

Central Otago District Council finance manager Jotham Kasibante said the revised figures led to a proposed $57,000 reduction in the ward’s operating budget.

Some $22,000 of that reduction was to the grants budget, a reduction of 87%; the remainder being $32,000 for detailed seismic assessment deferred to 202122, and $3000 for longterm plan consultation costs.

Grants for the pool amount to $14,000.

The board carried a motion to accept the budget minus the pool grant cut, and for it then to be fowarded back to the council.

Meanwhile, Covid19 has shaved $368,000 from the Vincent ward’s operating budget.

The Vincent Community Board met on Tuesday to review its revised budget. What it meant for ratepayers was presented as a broad average across the Vincent ward, down from the proposed average $540 mooted in February to about $498 per ratepayer, Mr Kasibante said.

The slimmed down operating budget includes: $220,000 of Molyneux Pool costs carried forward from 201920 from savings due to pools having to close; $65,000 in detailed seismic assessment costs postponed; $69,000 in reduced grants; and $12,000 in deferred longterm plan consultation costs.

The Maniototo Community Board was the final one to meet.

Council executive manager corporate services Leanne Macdonald told the meeting the revised budget came in the wake of Covid19 but that what that meant in terms of rates relief was ‘‘hard to gauge’’.

Mr Kasibante said it potentially meant an average rate reduction per ratepayer ‘‘unit’’ of $40 compared with what had been proposed in February.

The figures had been radically revised from February, when the board recommended an overall increase in the ward rate of $146,000.

Following direction from the executive committee on the proposed 202021 annual plan figures, staff proposed a revised budget increase of $61,000, totalling a total cut of $85,000.

It includes: $60,000 of detailed seismic assessment costs postponed for a year, $20,000 in reduced grants, and $5000 in longterm plan consultation costs to be apportioned over the next three years.

The Central Otago District Council will meet on Monday to finalise its Covid19 impacted annual plan.