Mayor in raptures over rates

MAYOR Tom Tate is celebrating after his seventh budget, which he says establishes the longest history of low rate rises on the Gold Coast.

“My seventh budget and again I’ve kept rates low,” Councillor Tate said at the opening of his budget address yesterday morning at the city council’s Evandale chambers.

“The seventh year hitting the CPI average residential rate rise – 1.73 per cent. This is the longest period in our city’s history of low rate rises in a row.

“It’s been a genuine team effort, from both councillors and officers. Councillors, we have to think ahead, way ahead.”

The Mayor showed a council-made video of himself hitting off a golf ball at the new Topgolf tourism attraction with key city leaders talking about the way ahead for the Gold Coast to avoid a postCommonwealth Games economic hangover.

Upstairs in the mayoral lounge later, he was photographed with a placard showing Commonwealth Games funding totalling $269 million owed to the state had been paid off.

Councillors who are part of his “leadership team” joined the press conference but five other city representatives, in the so-called council “doghouse”, were frustrated about not debating the budget.

All councillors voted in favour of the budget but Mudgeeraba-based councillor Glenn Tozer, on his Facebook page for constituents, only gave it a “pass mark”.

“This budget deserves a pass mark – I voted in favour – but a robust debate about these road investment figures may have been in the public interest,” Cr Tozer wrote.

Hinterland residents had told their local representative they wanted the council to “bust congestion” but the investment figures showed it was spending at growth levels for the city and not higher for priority needs.

Council road network investment is around 29 per cent for 2018-19 of the total capital works program, only slightly above that during the Commonwealth Games when the city held back on closing off lanes for upgrades.

During his budget address and then later when speaking to the media, Cr Tate emphasised the reduced rate rise and offering services like free offpeak public transport and dog registration cuts for pensioners.

He said the council had continued to pay down debt, paying off another $15 million this year.

Cr Tate said the city’s debt was forecast at $765 million when he was first elected in 2012 and appeared to heading towards $1 billion.

Council debt was paid down to $635 million this year, after paying for light rail stage two, the cultural precinct and the Commonwealth Games.

“When elected in 2012 the city had won the Games but no money was set aside. Well today I can announce we have paid off completely out Games commitments – no more to pay,” he said.

The Bulletin was told the Mayor had a sign prepared for the budget that showed $269 million in Games money had been paid off to the State Government.

The key budget points include: ● Investment in tourism will be more than $34 million.

● Art, culture and film production will get $50 million.

● Event support is increased by $6.4 million to cater for 27 events.

● First major land buy-up for six years with property acquired for a new Ormeau library.

● Up to $10 million to be spent buying land for koala space.

● Economic development activities to get $15 million to boost jobs.

● Road congestion-busting projects worth $110 million.

● Pimpama sports complex to get $50 million.

Deputy Mayor Donna Gates said she was pleased rate rises were kept to the level of CPI increases.

Cr Gates said the council had focused its road upgrade program on fast growing precincts like Yatala in the city’s north.

The Mayor said the council was prepared with its planning to move forward on projects like an offshore cruise ship terminal and further stages of light rail.

The budget ensures continued spending on the cultural precinct, with work to begin on the arts gallery and green bridge to Chevron Island.

GOLD Coast City Council has brought down what promises to be a fiscally responsible blueprint for the coming financial year.

Of course the proof – as they say – of the pudding is in the eating and Gold Coasters have much to digest with the city budget.

But ratepayers should be pleased that for seven years rate rises have remained low, even while the city continues to look ahead through investing in infrastructure, and has been achieving commendable results in reducing debt, including the massive $269 million bill that was owed to the State for the Commonwealth Games.

After putting on such a huge event as the Games, it is remarkable that instead of swimming in deep debt for many years to come, city administrators are steering finances back in the right direction.

Mayor Tom Tate was a happy man yesterday, proud of the budget and, with debt reducing, the opportunities that open up. The showpiece arts and culture precinct is becoming reality. But there is hard work ahead.

The city has to tackle the transport issues that remain a threat to future prosperity. The roads mess has to be fixed. Obviously that cannot happen overnight.

The budget is workmanlike and steady as she goes, but in selling it the Mayor was bullish and typically upbeat yesterday.

He continued to talk up his dream of an offshore cruise ship terminal, despite State reluctance and a report outlining risks.

His “can-do’’ attitude, already on display this week in his challenge to the Government to put up $8 million for a dive site and he would deliver the rest, burst to the fore again yesterday when he vowed the city would fund and build a cableway if the Government kept avoiding the idea.

In a city built on the “crash or crash through’’ approach of past entrepreneurs, it is exciting talk. But huge obstacles at State and federal levels remain to block a cableway, just as they did when consortiums tried to develop such a project in the 1990s and as recently as 2014.