At a meeting this week Mackenzie District Councillors adopted their Long-Term Plan for 2024-34.
The LTP balances affordability for residents while delivering on the services and infrastructure that makes Mackenzie a great place to live – for residents now and in the future.
Preparation of the Long-Term Plan has been ongoing for a considerable period of time. Councillors held workshops and discussions from July 2023, with almost weekly Council sessions since January. In May Council approved the outputs of that work – including the Consultation Document seeking community feedback – along with its supporting documents - Asset Management plans, Infrastructure Strategy, Financial Strategy, and financial policies.
As a result of that consultation Mackenzie District Councillors considered 211 submissions from business and community leaders, its local community boards, residents’ groups and individuals.
Council is pleased with the high level of public interest in the plan which sets out the council’s programme for providing services to the district over the next 10 years and how they will be funded. The response demonstrates the passion our residents have for the district and their recognition of the role the Council plays in delivering the services they depend on. The Council held public hearings and deliberations from 1 – 3 July 2024 and then Councillors agreed on the decisions arising from submissions for inclusion in the final Long-Term Plan. The team have now completed our audit process and are pleased to receive a Unqualified audit opinion. The adoption of the plan marked a key milestone for the Mayor and Councillors.
Mayor Anne Munro says ‘We have had to make some tough decisions about our priorities for the next 10 years and what this means for rate increases. We have produced a no-frills budget with an emphasis on funding the “must haves” rather than the “nice to haves”.’
The average rates increase for year one of the LTP is 14.7% and the annual average increase over 10 years of 6.5%. Individual rates’ increases will vary depending on the council services applying to an individual property, and how that property’s valuation changed compared with others in the recent property revaluations.
As well as responding to the specific issues we highlighted for feedback, in the 211 submissions received there were some strong common themes.
A large number of submitters told us they were concerned about aged care services, given the district’s ageing population. The Council has emphasised that they remain willing to facilitate and support aged care initiatives for the community’s older residents.
The housing shortage continues to be a serious issue for residents due partly to the high proliferation of houses used for short term rental accommodation, especially in Tekapo and Twizel. Additional medium density zoning has been included in the current District Plan Review and the Council will enable and support mechanisms to facilitate development.
Council will continue to fund an additional daily clean of the district’s key public toilets to cope with the high use during the tourist season. Staff have been asked to prepare a business case on options for a mixed model of user-pays and free use. Council reaffirmed its commitment to a 2019 Memorandum of Understanding with the Tekapo Squash and Rackets Club and has agreed to allocate $500,000 to progress the relocation of the current squash courts. Council has deferred the proposed replacement of the Cass River bridge, estimated to cost $4.2 million, subject to a detailed business case with its commitment conditional on stakeholder engagement and funding.
Mayor Munro says that many submitters sought Council reassurance about maintaining services and facilities in their towns.
‘Council are, and always have been, totally committed to providing library services in Twizel,’ she says. ‘Council currently provides funding for the Twizel Area School shared library. Recognising that the school is being redeveloped we had already allocated funding in our draft plan for an interim library with staff working alongside the community to identify possible sites. The school will give us notice of when we need to transition to the interim library and funds will be included in our next LTP in three years for a permanent library when the cost and location is known.
‘The Councillors agreed to continue supporting community-led initiatives and have allocated seed funding of $30,000 in the LTP to kick start a community-led project for a community hub in Twizel which may also include the permanent library. The Council will continue its current annual operational grant to the Twizel Community Care Trust for the community care centre.’
Twizel’s only sports fields are in the school grounds and Council is working with the school to draft an MOU to ensure ongoing use of the fields through an operational subsidy subject to certain conditions. The Council hopes the MOU will also clarify the school’s access to facilities such as the Events Centre.
Submitters also raised questions about fees and charges, including those for hiring council facilities and registration fees for working dogs. These will be considered in a review of fees and charges next year by Council. For the Mackenzie Community Centre in Fairlie Council retained the proposed fee, noting that any reduction in fees would result in higher rates in the Fairlie area.
Throughout the deliberations, the Councillors have been very mindful of the need for prudent financial management. Councillors are very aware that any rates’ increase will have an impact on household incomes, particularly for those on fixed incomes including pensioners, who are already feeling the financial pinch from a rise in the cost of living.
Inflation is our biggest issue with massive cost increases for essential items, especially infrastructure. According to Infometric data, the cost of building bridges has risen by 38%, roads and water supply systems by 27% and sewerage systems by 30% compared to three years ago.