Majority feedback to date indicates a ‘steady as she goes' preference to the question I asked last week – more rates or less Council services.

If we keep things on an even keel then our future rates increases (including the new Sport and Exhibition Centre) will still be way above the anticipated inflation rate.
So it is important that the Council (elected members and staff) get to hear your views. One person I spoke to had moved here from Wanganui a few years ago and told me they got better Council services here for less rates. That's right!

The opium syndrome
Comparisons given by the auditor like North Shore City average rates being $501 more than Tauranga might only demonstrate that it's easy to collect a compulsory property tax for spendthrift councils to waste. My experience shows that if you give people other people's money, they will spend it. Quickly! I call it the opium syndrome – other people's money and it seems to produce the similar kind of high. We don't do it as much any more at this Council and it seems to me that maybe the auditor should be focusing on spendthrift councils for them to get their rates to where ours are!

Smoke and mirrors
Talking about spendthrift Councils, I note that Environment BOP, the regional council based at Whakatane (and now Tauranga at a cost to you of $10.5 million), is quoted at only a 2.4% rate increase. That's smoke and mirrors stuff that the auditor should really consider. In Tauranga the EBOP rate demand you pay is up from $56 to $62 – that's just under 11%. But wait – there's more.
They heavily subsidise the rate with dividends from their shareholding in the Port Company. By about half, so that's around an 18-22% real rate increase as far as Tauranga is concerned. On top of 17% or so last year.
This money is your money and masking rate increases like this is naughty. The media scrutiny EBOP gets locally is usually only from their own media releases. Regional councils are a scandal on a grand scale and their function should be absorbed into area councils. Freeing up much needed revenue to actually get on and do things like roads instead of endless reports (like the new airport they proposed at Paengaroa some 25 miles from Rotorua Airport) and buildings like they proposed and spent some $800,000 planning at Sulphur Point.

Absorbing aquatic networks
At Council we're back into the swing of monthly committee meetings after producing the Draft 10 Year Plan. At Monitoring Committee we received six monthly reports from our CCOs (Council Controlled Organisations – which aren't controlled at all, merely guided). Tauranga City Aquatics Ltd (TCAL), which runs the aquatics network, was first up. It is behind budget but chair Warren Banks assures Council it will be on budget for Council's/ratepayers' operating grant/subsidy by year's end.
I was alarmed to hear that TCAL is looking at absorbing the Papamoa School pool into the network. The school/education department is finding it uneconomic to own/run (surprise, surprise) so they're trying to flick their problem on to ratepayers. I've said it before – TCAL is doing a great job and if Council was still running pools, the deficit of around $1.5 million would be double to treble that. TCAL is going to ask Council to make the parking by the Mount Hot Pools an exclusive user zone. So if you're not displaying a Mount Hot Pools user ticket, you can expect to be towed. Next they'll be suggesting parking meters at the Mount!

Bad weather and budget downers
Tauranga City Venues Ltd (TCVL), which runs Baypark Stadium, is on six month budget but with some ups and downs mainly centred around advertising/sponsorship income. Some of this is caused by uncertain economic times but overall it's going okay. A versatile facility, the recent kapa haka festival was a great success both to the festival and the facility. Speedway revenue at $58,000 and only seven meetings might raise questions as to whether it really is a speedway and what other uses might it be put to if the contractual arrangements presently in place weren't there. The TCVL board and speedway promoter are now working closely together to move forward to mutual benefit. Speedway revenue was $16,740 down on budget due to two cancelled meetings thanks to bad weather.

Sand upgrade at rugby field
The rugby field is being upgraded with sand (the sand that's there isn't the right sand) at a cost of around $100,000. Rugby produced $38,600 in revenue $8,600 above budget at $47,100. And so on. The big zippo is naming rights budgeted at $50,000 and actual is nil. Maybe we could do a bulk sponsorship deal – libraries, pools, parks, stadium – just kidding!

Art donations increase
The Art Gallery Trust is above budget. Donations are up – imagine if there was an admission charge – by $54,860. Total visitors for six months were 24,116 people. I was overjoyed to hear that the Art Gallery is advising EBOP on acquisition of appropriate art for the new building – Regency House where the IRD are currently housed. I have a few suggestions. But Richard Arlidge the Art Gallery director said that they did charge them for this service. I wouldn't! My suggestion would include ivory, towers, cuckoos, clouds, cakes and guillotines.
Finally, in addition to my plea to you – especially those of you who normally don't participate in the public consultation process – to let Council know of your opinion on the draft 10 year plan, it is imperative that Trustpower electricity consumers partake in the upcoming TECT poll on whether you want the status quo for you annual TECT dividend: 80% in your pocket, 20% to community (Waipuna Hospice, Rescue Helicopter plus a myriad of other community assistance) or the lot in your pocket. There's a lot riding on this poll result and it's too late after the event if it doesn't go the way you want, if you don't participate.