More money for priority projects
Western Victorian Federal Government representatives Dan Tehan and Anne Webster have declared last week’s Federal Budget a major boost for municipalities across their electorates.
They said in mirror statements that councils would directly benefit from a $1-billion funding boost through the third phase of a Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program.
“This budget injection for our hardworking local councils means even more funding for upgrades to local roads, bike paths, community halls, playgrounds, parks and sports facilities, as well as improved accessibility to public facilities,” they said.
Deputy Prime Minister and Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Minister Michael Mccormack said the new investment brought the total Federal Government commitment to the LRCI Program to $2.5-billion.
“Providing more time for planning and construction will enable local governments to consider a broader range of priority projects and potentially undertake larger, more complex developments to deliver even greater benefits for their communities,” he said.
“This is all about supporting the resilience of local economies by delivering projects and stimulating more jobs to help Mallee communities bounce back from COVID-19, with the additional funding and a longer delivery window to provide greater flexibility for communities to address local priorities.”
Local Government Minister Mark Coulton said councils had so far nominated more than 5500 projects over the first two phases of the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program, with construction on the first 2900 projects due to be completed by June 30.
He said the program had enabled councils to help communities bounce back from the impacts of COVID-19 and the latest funding phase helped build community strength and resilience.
“Local Roads and Community Infrastructure phase three is expected to support an estimated 3500 jobs over the life of the projects across the nation, particularly where employment in other sectors such as tourism has been negatively impacted,” he said.
Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program phase-three council allocations included: Ararat $2,922,716; Hindmarsh $2,161,596; Horsham $2,856,792; Northern Grampians $3,715,968; West Wimmera $3,056,022; Yarriambiack 2,645,948; Buloke $3,199,526; Pyrenees $2,789,842; Southern Grampians $3,970,508; Central Goldfields $1,579,092; Gannawarra $2,635,910; Loddon $4,775,452; Mildura $5,409,635; Swan Hill $2,868,316; Colac Otway $3406,400; Corangamite $4,571,110; Glenelg $4,547,222; Golden Plains $2,667,310; Moyne $5,435,806; and Warrnambool $850,048.
Councils will be able to access the latest funding round from January 1, 2022, with phase-three projects to be completed by June 30, 2023.