Locals will have the opportunity to give feedback on how council spends ratepayers’ money later this month when public consultation of this year’s annual plan (2023/2024) begins.

From Friday March 24 locals are encouraged to learn about the council’s proposed plan and make submissions on topics that interest them and indicate where they would like council spending to focus.

This is also the opportunity for community groups to submit their requests for community grant funding.

Queenstown Lakes District Council media spokesperson Sam White said community feedback will help council prioritise how and where rates are spent.

“As part of the consultation we’ll be asking for your views on some specific changes to things like fees and charges,” Sam said.

“We’ll also be sharing how we plan to reprogramme capital investment in light of cost escalations and how we fund the recently-settled weather tightness claims.”

A draft annual plan and explanatory information outlining what council is proposing to do over the coming financial year (FY23/24) will be presented to elected members at a council meeting on March  23, Sam said.

It will include details of proposed changes to fees and charges and the capital investment programme.

“People will be able to access these documents online, in free newspapers, at council offices and libraries, etc,” he said.

This year’s annual plan will require some amendments to the programme laid out in the council’s overarching 10-year plan (10YP).

For instance, when the 10YP was approved in 2021 the cost of paying millions to settle the district’s ‘leaky homes’ court case was unknown. That settlement was achieved at the end of last year and the substantial cost must be paid primarily by increasing council’s debt which means a significant increase in rates.

Council also has to adapt to inflation reflected in the increasing cost of getting things done, such as installing active transport routes or building community amenities.

By reprogramming capital investment, deferring some of the spending on current projects to future years, the aim is to enable council to keep within prescribed debt limits and to reduce the rates’ increase.

The 10YP is due for its triennial review next year so council is also asking locals to think about what they would like to happen in the district in the near future.

The 10YP sets the direction for council, providing a long-term focus and explaining the purpose and expected cost of each project or activity; the annual plan indicates what the council intends to do within the next 12 months to achieve the direction set by the 10YP.

Sam said council is asking the community to advise how council should prioritise and invest resources to deliver what the community needs over the next 10 years.

Most community grant funding is committed in the 10YP process but there’s also a small fund available for limited community projects or to cover an organisation's operational costs, he said.

For instance, in the last Annual Plan deliberations Bike Wānaka and Upper Clutha Tracks Trust were each granted $21,000 for operational and administrative expenses; and Alpine Community Development Trust (Community Networks Wānaka) had its annual grant increased from $33.5K  to $58.5K to pay for renting space at the Wānaka Community Hub.

This fund also provides a regular annual $5,000 grant to each of the recognised community associations for operational/administrative costs and as seed funding for community projects. 

The associations are encouraged to make submissions on how they would like to see each community develop.

Find information on what you need to include in an application for a community grant here.

PHOTO: Wānaka App