Annual Plan 2020-21

It is still easy to have your say. There are a variety of ways you can provide feedback and engage with Council about this plan. We will be guided by COVID-19 requirements to ensure people’s safety.

Option 1: Use a number of the online tools here on this site where you will find an online feedback form, place to ask questions/leave comments

Option 2: Send written feedback to council by 17 June 2020 - mailing address details available here

Option 3: Post comments and suggestions on Council’s Facebook page

Comments and suggestions will be considered, discussed and form part of decision making. However receipt of feedback provided via social media cannot be acknowledged.

Option 4: Our customer service staff are set up to take feedback over the phone on 0800 020 001 and leave your verbal feedback

Customer Service staff will need to collect some personal contact information (e.g. name, address, phone etc) to accompany you feedback

Option 5: Attend one of our feedback sessions hosted by elected members. These will be recorded so your feedback can be captured. Time and dates available here.

Your feedback needs to reach Council by 4pm on 17 June 2020 - further times lines are posted on this site.

All feedback will be considered by Council and used to finalise the Annual Plan 2020/21.

The proposed recovery strategy - ‘build back better’ aims to not just see our district recover, but to also build more resilience into our economy and community. It responds to the challenges Rotorua may face, and provides necessary flexibility to address new challenges and opportunities that may emerge but which we cannot yet predict.

There are three specific areas within the annual plan that have been adapted in response to COVID19 to support our district to build back better.

They are:

• Our 4 key projects;
• Partnership projects
• Housing and thriving communities strategy

The 4 key projects are the Lakefront Development, the Forest hub, the Museum and the Sir Howard Morrison Performing Arts Centre.

The partnership fund is essentially a $30million injection into community projects that align with our long term plan and Vision 2030, and that also create economic stimulus.

The housing and thriving communities strategy seeks to address some of the housing issues within our district that Council and partners can move on quickly.

Council continues to grapple with the challenge of rates affordability and equity of rates distribution. The strategy over the last couple of years has been a view towards driving more rates away from fixed charges and to leverage rates against the capital cost of a property. This is based on a national approach to rating that the higher the capital value of a property the more likely the ratepayer can afford and pay for the rates.

However ongoing costs increases in wastewater, water and refuse which are a fixed component of your rates goes against this strategy. This results in the costs of the overall increase falling unfairly across some rating categories.

In a time when there is a proposed 0% general rates increase, a change to the uniform annual general charge (UAGC) can provide opportunities to shift the rates distribution from fixed charges towards the capital value. In the current situation increased costs in waste water, water and refuse mean the distribution of the overall rates increase is impacting most on lower capital value properties.

We are proposing a reduction of $25 to the UAGC to achieve a fairer and more even impact of the targeted rates increases.

A sample table of the changes described above that would likely affect Residential/Rural Residential Properties:

Your rates

There is a example table of sample properties and the proposed rates for 2020/21 that includes the proposed reduction of the UAGC by $25 on page 24 of the Annual Plan 2020-21 Consultation Document here.

For the proposed rates for an individual property use our online tool here. The calculator shows what the proposed increases in rates for your property will be.

To further help to cushion the impact Council has developed a 'Rates Deferral Scheme' - for further information and to make an application here

For further information on rates and understanding your bill: www.rotorualakescouncil.nz/rates

Within the Annual Plan, and to help cushion the blow, we are proposing adjustments to Councils financial strategy. As well adjustments to rates (Find more detail here) there will be some increase in Council debt and spending.

Debt is being used to support economic recovery projects via the partnership fund, and fund shortfalls in operational revenue.

Council has also made adjustments to its operations to reduce costs by:

• No increases in the levels of staffing, only filling required positions if they become vacant
• No pay rises for staff
• Budget line cuts in a number of operational areas
• No inflationary adjustments to budgeted expenditure

E ngā iwi puta noa i tō tatau rohe o Rotorua, tēnā tatau.

The world around us has changed and as a result our district will not look the same. Covid-19 has impacted us all, but in particular; the tourism, hospitality and retail sectors. A sustained effort by all is now required to build back confidence in our community and the economy.

We have developed a recovery plan –‘Rotorua build back better’– this is not just a plan about trying to recover but a plan that looks to build more resilience into our economy, our community. However, it does shift from our direction and the long-term vision for Rotorua.

Now is not the time for Council to retrench, or shut things down or hope that things will just get better, that would be really short sighted and only make the situation worse.

Understanding that we need to forge ahead and lead the district in its recovery, we too as a Council; as an organisation, have had a long hard look at how we do things and have revised our financial strategy to take into account the cost of implementing and funding the requirements for the coming financial year. We have a solid package to move us forward.

We will continue in our successful approach of partnering with Government, with business and iwi to look at ways to fund and deliver Rotorua’s recovery. They tell us we are on the right track. In addition, we have a major role to play as Council in standing our district up again. Our commitment to the recovery plan is reflected strongly in this budget as will be a longer view expressed through the development of the next long-term plan. In the coming financial year our efforts to recover will be witnessed through:

• Our continued delivery of essential services
• The delivery of existing projects to support recovery – recommence the 4 big projects
• Economic stimulus – new capital projects that will help stand up the district economy quickly and create ongoing employment opportunities; and the
• Housing strategy

This means if ever there was a time to act wisely, it’s now. That doesn’t mean ignoring what’s happening, it means striking the balance to keep ourselves and our people safe, and ensure we can keep providing services that act in a way that keeps our economy, local businesses and local people going. We need to ensure our resilience as a community and district and to ensure we can cushion the blow and position ourselves for recovery.

In reading this document you will see how 8 strategies devised to drive the development of our annual plan thinking are put into action, including a zero percent general rate increase and increases only in targeted rates to fund core infrastructure services like waste water, water and refuse collection.

There will be recovery, our role is to make sure it is as robust, as resilient and as quick as possible.

Tatau tatau – we together

Hon Steve Chadwick JP

Mayor of Rotorua