Matt Cowley Tauranga City Councillor

Tauranga City Council's draft rates and debt forecasts for the next 10 years were released on Monday. Let's see what are triggering those costs.

There are three issues I believe are driving council's focus for the next 10 years. They are successfully managing growth, addressing legacy issues, and a focus on doing business better.

Firstly, council is being inundated with building consents applications.

These levels are approaching the peaks experienced during the property boom in 2007. This is before the first house has been built under Tauranga's new Special Housing Accords.

Council has long had a philosophy that growth pays for growth, as people moving here should pay for the extra infrastructure they will directly benefit from via development contributions.

But Council has to fund the depreciation and maintenance as soon as the assets are installed.

These, and other growth-related costs, will add about 2.5 per cent onto rates next year alone.

There are also legacy issues council is dealing with. These include our ICT, stormwater issues, and finally resolving Council's leaky building. I want to stop creating more legacy issues for future generations to address.

I fully support council's focus on doing business better. We are following other industries by encouraging more people to conveniently interact with council online, so there are fewer queues when you need to pop into council's reception.

Our pre-audit budget proposes to keep average rate increases under 3.5 per cent for the next four years.

Council's debt is forecast to be $326 million by June 30, 2015, which includes the sale of Route K to the Government. Council's debt is forecast to peak at just under $500 million during the next 10 years.

The good news for ratepayers is the vast majority of this debt is not yours to pay back.

The three big projects next year include a $24 million carpark in the CBD entirely paid by user fees. The ‘Te Okuroa Drive' road in Papamoa is nearly entirely funded by development contributions. We're also nearing the end of the Southern Pipeline, where two-thirds of the remaining $24m will be funded by development contributions.

The Southern Pipeline is nearly connected and it would be silly to stop the project since $75m has already been invested in laying pipes in the ground.

There is only a little bit of discretion in this budget. The events, high performance centre, and CBD budgets are small in comparison with these big growth-funded items, which will be paid back over time. We're also continuing our non-strategic property sales.

Feel free to email me your thoughts (matt.cowley@tauranga.govt.nz), call/text me on 027 6989 548, and follow me at www.facebook.com/a.younger.voice.