What are your views on a rate increase to cover services into the future?

After just receiving my rates notice for 2010/11 I was horrified to think that it could rise again. My rates are rising from $563 to $719 per quater which is 27%. My wages went up 3%! After living here for 29 years I feel I am being pushed out of Waverley. Rates should be collected per person living in a property. 10 people could live in a property and pay the same as the neighbour next door with only 3 people living there. They all use the facilities equally so it seems very unfair. If the Council do not have enough money, then cut the services that are not absolutely neccessary and concentrate on important infrastructure.

Increase rates, however, reduce the impact upon the community by reducing expenditure on less essential service and Council service delivery and increasing variable income based upon full cost recovery.

I have read the report and it is clear from talking to people that this is not just $2 increase per week. It appears our civic fathers are looking at a long term increases that would double the rates, let alone how much the waste charges have been going up. My street is so bumpy and pot holed you think you were driving in Africa. Where has the parking money been spent? Not on the roads and footpaths but a ritzy customer service centre and some palm trees in Campbell Parade.

As said rates to increase AGAIN are NOT sustainable to MANY people. people get a 3-4% increase in their salaries and Gov't dept. raise their services 20-40%??? Cut some non essential services that many are double-ups anyway, and get to provide what is really needed which in many cases leave lots to be said . We pay levies on this and that and honestly can see much doing for them either.

no rate increases. the council should live within its means.

I believe Council needs to reduce its activities to core items, eliminating management of festivals, affordable housing and even child care centres. All these items can and will be provided by the private sector at a true cost without subsidy from rate payers. Council also needs to ensure it gets value from every dollar it does spend.

Having done that, Council must be able to fund its core activities and if the community demands various functions (rubbish collection roads etc) that is not covered by current rates, then rates should be increased.

I do not support a rise in rates. I do not see the benefit in paying the current rates so i can't imagine how council can manage additional funds productively.

I pay rates to a number of councils in Sydney and interstate and i've always been amazed at how low my rates are here in Waverley in comparison to the others, considering the location and the value of the land here. Our current rates are above the Waverley average and looking at the last rates notices, even the highest proposed rise will not take my Waverley rates up to the level of the others! So it looks like we are on a very low rate to begin with.

My comments elsewhere are also relevant to this question so I will not repeat them here. Rather this is an opportunity to make some technical comments and also unpack some of the assumptions in the Service Plus package.

Is it just me or do others think there is a distinct bias to the full Services Plus, rate rise and trust Council on everything else package?

To be clear, a $2.46 a week rise each year becomes a $17.22 a week rise by year seven. Yearly equivalents are $127.92 and $895.44 respectively. The amount sought is definitely significant in the out years. more…

No rate increase, council has to live within its means like the rest of us. Stop wasting money painting pretty patterns on the roads and prioritise your services... more income will only lead to greater inefficiency.

Rates should be increased to maintain current services but not to fulfil the enhancements that were envisioned. Waverley ratepayers resent paying for the cleaning up of so much rubbish, damage and graffiti while our roads and footpaths remain in a shoddy condition.

Waverely Council should not adopt the Service Plus option that has been mentioned, this is "pie in the sky" stuff, stick to covering the basic services of our area. We need to adopt more of a user pays system to cover increases in costs involved. I agree we will have to have minimal rate increases, but these to be linked to the CPI index

Cost is rising, so we do need more services the question is how to fund all.

One way is to get reed of council all together & amalgamate, this will save money on duplication of services.

Or the council will have to think how to make money, in order to provide much needed services to the local community without increasing rates – fines – lodgement fee and etc. What we need is not criticisms of the council but creative thinking. And I think this is a forum, for this type discussions , it is easy to criticise or object , it much harder to provide solution and support .

Is no doubt, we all against rate hikes, so let’s create a forum , where we can all discuss how to generate extra income for our local council .

It is amazing how proponents of excessive 'tax and spend' big governments can trivialise their charges.

Dishonestly hiding the proposed real increases behind weekly figures is a misrepresentation of what people are likely to face.

Here is what they do not want you to hear;

Bronwyn Kelly, Director, Corporate and Technical Services at Waverley council quoted on streetcorner.com;

"....to implement council’s new expanded spending program..."

....“rates will need to increase over the next seven years by between 70% and 120%”

That equates to 50% of ratepayers paying an extra $416 per year more in rates, another 17% will be paying $728 extra per year, 14% will be paying $1,020 extra per year and the remaining 19 % will be paying increases well in excess of $1020 per year.

Considering Waverley Council is one of the most expensive councils in NSW, charging local residents more than nearly every other council, they must be crazy to contemplate increasing any income, variable or fixed.

See the figures for yourself here;

http://nowun.netau.net/

Given increased requirements upon local government to assume more responsibility for what have traditionally been state and federal government responsibilities, perhaps Waverley rate payers could identify and reject those responsibilities and behalf of Council and redirect them to the most appropriate level of state or federal government. I appreciate that costs have risen and don't mind paying rate increases, but I do mind having to pay for services that are or should be the responsibility of other levels og government for which I contribute via taxes. Maybe its time for the state government in particular to stop shedding its responsibilities upon local government.

I think it probable that most people would be in favour of maintaining or improving services but am concerned about the method of paying for same. Rates have always been based on land values which often have littlle relation to either the level of services utilised or the ability to pay. For example a home unit with relatively low rates might accommodate a lot of active people while a high rating free-standing home could house a widow or retired couple for whom an annual rise of $300 to $400 is extortionate. A compromise would be to charge the same flat increase (eg $70 pa) to all ratepayers and make up the rest by user pays increases on say, parking fees & fines, pavenment seating for cafes and charges for use of venues/facilities.

No way, look at cuts within the existing infastructure of Council as the state public service has had to do over the last 4 years. Fund only essential services and stop the waste that goes on within Council and you may gain more respect for what you are doing. Council's have had and still have a reputation for being inefficient, overly bureaucratic, often corrupt and untransparent. Waverley is no different. Educational visits to sister cities, interstate and overseas conferences to all staff and Councillors should be banned as should be catering for meetings.

“What are your views on a rate increase to cover services into the future?”

For existing services from Council that are essential, then rates should only be increased in proportion to the increase in normal continuing business operating costs. Generally, these increases should be within the annual rate increase cap imposed by the State Government. These essential services are:

• Beach and pool maintenance

• Lifeguard services

• Development and building approvals

• Library services

• Parks maintenance

• Street and mall cleaning

• Tree and green space maintenance

• Parking services - (see below)

• Cemetery services – (see below)

• Waste collection services – (see below)

• Infrastructure asset renewal and maintenance

• Financial management and long term community planning

Of these services more…

“What are your views on a rate increase to cover services into the future? “

Before raising any rates these non essential services should be cut;

• Services for the aged, youth, Indigenous groups, multicultural groups and the disabled

• Child care and family support services

• Arts, cultural and volunteering programs

• Social and affordable housing services

• Management of major places, malls and villages

• Environmental management

• Emergency management services

• Events and festivals management

• Recreation and active living

• Traffic and transport management

After cutting these non essential services, rates should only increase at or below the state government imposed cap.

I cannot understand how most people could afford the rate increases Council is talking about. Who will be able to live here? I think rates should be kept as low as possible.