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The
additional motions from the amendment were added at the end of the
‘General comments’ section of the substantive motion and then the
Chairperson put the substantive motion.
Resolution number KT/2020/112
MOVED by
Chairperson J Gillon, seconded by Deputy Chairperson D Grant:
That the Kaipātiki Local Board:
General comments
a)
supports an annual
general rates increase of 3.5% for the 2020/21 financial year, as:
i)
it reflects the
nature of the feedback the board has received from its community in response
to the question asked as part of consultation on the Emergency Budget (noting
approximately 42% of all respondents from the local board area indicated
support for the proposal);
ii)
any rates increase
set at a lower level (2.5% or lower, including no rates increase) would make
post COVID-19 pandemic recovery exponentially more difficult; and
iii) any rates increase set at a lower level (2.5%
or lower, including no rates increase) would result in council having to re-adjust
other funding mechanisms accordingly to aid recovery, such as drastically
increasing the debt-to-revenue ratio and relying more heavily on asset
recycling / divestment as means to fund council activities.
b)
supports the
introduction of a COVID-19 Rates Postponement Scheme for the 2020/21
financial year, as it:
i)
reflects the nature
of the feedback the board has received from its community in response to the
question asked as part of consultation on the Emergency Budget (approximately
70% of all respondents from the local board area indicated support for the
proposal); and
ii)
allows ratepayers
who are struggling financially as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic to defer
up to $20,000 of their rates for the 2020/21 financial year, noting that at
the end of the postponement period ratepayers accessing the scheme would have
until 30 June 2022 to pay of the balance.
c)
does not support
the inclusion of interest and administration fees as part of the COVID-19
Rates Postponement Scheme.
d)
supports the
suspension of the Accommodation Provider Targeted Rate (APTR) for hotels,
motels, hostels and accommodation businesses until 31 March 2021; as it:
i)
reflects the nature
of the feedback the board has received from its community in response to the
question asked as part of consultation on the Emergency Budget (approximately
74.5% of all respondents from the local board area indicated support for the
proposal); and
ii)
will assist the
accommodation sector who are struggling financially as a result of the
COVID-19 pandemic due to its negative impact on the tourism and accommodation
industry, whilst noting that the APTR will only be charged for the last three
months of the 2020/21 financial year (1 April – 30 June 2021).
e)
believes that the
proposals consulted upon have spread the impact of budget cuts and deferrals
too far and wide, which will likely result in long-term negative ramifications
for important local council facilities, services and project, as well as a
loss of staff knowledge that will compound recovery efforts over the coming
years.
f)
advocates that
Auckland Council should be utilising a substantial one-off increase to the
debt-to-revenue ratio to ensure budgets and funding as agreed as part of the
current Long-term Plan (LTP) remain unchanged, which will alleviate the
impact of proposed cuts / reductions to core services, projects and local
board budgets, as the board believes the consequences of doing so would not
be as severe as the those outlined within the Emergency Budget consultation
document.
g)
believes that
Auckland Council should have formally consulted on a wider range of rates
increase proposals than was undertaken.
h)
requests that the
board’s existing Network Connections capital budget is retained by the
local board, as it has been allocated to an ongoing project for the last two
years that has recently undergone public consultation.
i)
believes that the
Auckland Council should ensure its procurement policy and use of consultants
is competitive and efficient.
j)
advocates that the
Auckland Council should request Council Controlled Organisations to save
costs in their corporate accommodation.
k)
notes the high
public concern around the costs of Auckland Council Controlled Organisation
staffing and that ratepayers have an expectation that Auckland Council will
address these concerns.
Transport
l)
does not support
any proposed cuts to the Auckland Transport Local Board Transport Capital
Fund (ATLBTCF) as included as part of the proposed reductions under a 3.5% or
2.5% rates increase.
m)
does not support
any reduction to the Community Safety Fund as the local board has a strong
history of investing in road safety improvements, and therefore requests that
these budgets continue to be made to invest in the safety of the community at
large.
n)
does not support
any delay to the development and implementation of the ferry strategy, and
strongly advocates for the inclusion of the budget necessary to progress this
work in the 2020/21 financial year.
Deferral of stormwater initiatives
o)
does not support
the deferral of any stormwater or wastewater upgrade projects planned for the
Kaipātiki Local Board area, due to its flood-prone
nature of the land forms / geography found in the area.
p)
does not support
the deferral of any stormwater network growth projects and renewal / capacity
upgrades planned for the local board area, including the Totaravale Drive and
Birkenhead Avenue / Waratah Street project.
q)
support the
non-deferral of emergency works, including Milford.
r)
does not support
the deferral of Greenslade Reserve stage two works due to the impact on the
Northcote Unlock Project.
Deferral of Natural Environment Targeted Rate projects
(NETR)
s)
does not support
the deferral of any Natural Environment Targeted Rate (NETR) funding projects
planned for the local board area, including any deferral of kauri dieback
mitigation, enforcement and track works.
t)
strongly supports
the continuation of all track works, upgrades and renewals planned in the
Kaipātiki Local Board area for the 2020/21
financial year.
Community investment
u)
does not support
any delay in the progression of the ‘one local initiatives’
programme (OLI), as this will have a significant and negative impact on
delivering the Birkenhead War Memorial Park grandstand placement for an
unknown period, as deferral will result in the business plan not being
available to inform the next Long-term Plan (LTP).
v)
does not support the
proposed deferral of asset renewals for the 2020/21 financial year, as this
will likely result in significant health and safety issues that will have a
compounding impact on council’s ability to renew assets in future
years.
w)
does not support
the deferral of its allocated but uncommitted locally driven initiatives
(LDI) capital budget, as the local board expects these projects to be
delivered within the agreed timeframes as per the board’s agreed and
resolved work programmes.
x)
does not support
any reduction in library budgets, as these institutions are very important
community hubs within the Kaipātiki
Local Board area.
Corporate
y)
does not support
any deferral of the re-fit planned for the Kaipātiki Local Board office scheduled for the 2020/21
financial year, and requests that the installation of sound system and
replacement of the digital projectors proceed at pace to ensure the meeting
space is efficient, effective and welcoming to elected members and the
general public.
z)
cannot support the
following proposed initiatives due to the lack of information provided:
i)
‘other
initiatives still to be identified, including operational model changes -
$24.75 million’; and
ii)
‘additional
savings targets allocated to Finance, Planning, Governance divisions - $16.40
million’.
Panuku Development Auckland (Panuku)
aa) supports the continuation of the Northcote
town centre project (including proposed land / asset acquisitions associated
with the initiative) and the planned Haumaru Housing projects planned in the
local board area.
Proposed reductions to locally driven initiatives (LDI)
bb) does not support any reduction to the local
board’s locally driven initiatives (LDI) operational budget for the
following reasons:
i)
this budget is used
to fund important front-line services, and any reduction will have a
widespread and significant impact on the local community and community groups
/ organisations;
ii)
during the post
COVID-19 rebuilding period, the local board needs the ability to respond to
the new reality with greater focus on support for the community, as well as
ensuring that previously provided community activities, events and services
are maintained; and
iii) the local board may need to utilise its LDI
operational budgets to ‘top up’ service levels reductions and
cuts that are likely to occur across its asset based services (ABS)
operational budget.
Infrastructure and Environmental Services
cc) does not support any reduction to budgets used
to support preventative maintenance or pest eradication, as such reductions
in the short term will have severe long-term implications with regards to
pest management in the local board area.
dd) does not support any reduction to the Regional
Natural Environment Heritage Grant, as this will have a significant impact on
the environmental groups in the local board area who rely heavily on this
fund to deliver volunteer-led environmental outcomes at a far cheaper and
agile way than if they were council-led.
ee) does not support the suspension of the
inorganic waste collection, as this will likely result in a higher level of
illegal dumping on public and private land.
Regulatory
ff)
does not support
the proposed reduction in the number of animal shelters from 3 to 2, as this
would likely result in higher costs (including travel times) for animal
owners, thereby resulting in a rise in the euthanisation of animals.
Customer and Community Services
gg) does not support the reduction in the opening
hours for any council facilities, or the potential permanent or temporary
closure of council facilities, and expresses concern that the term
‘under-utilised’ is undefined.
hh) supports the proposed reduction in catering
and entertainment budgets, and suggests that further reductions could be
found in this area.
Parks, Sport and Reserves
ii)
does not support
the removal of the Les Mills fitness programme, which attracts clientele and
generate revenue for council.
jj)
does not support
the proposed reduction in open space maintenance standards (reduction in
mowing, footpath cleaning, removal of rubbish bins, closure of public toilets
etc), as sanitation is a core council service and any reduction will likely
result in numerous health and safety issues, as a well as the degradation of
the state of the public realm.
Arts, Community and Events (ACE)
kk) supports the cancellation of regional events
for the 2020/21 financial years, as there is a risk that the COVID-19
pandemic could return and disrupt events, and that participation numbers
could be lower than normal due to social distancing.
Transport network
ll)
does not support
any reduction in public transport service levels.
mm) does not support an increase in enforcement in
order to infringement revenue to offset a reduction in public transport
spending.
nn) does not support reducing or removing
concessions (child, student and tertiary, senior and Super Gold etc), or the
removal of any off-peak far differential.
oo) does not support charging for park and ride
areas, as such facilities encourage and support the use of public transport,
and the introduction of a user-pays scheme at park and ride facilities will
likely result in reduced patronage / use of public transport.
Other proposals
pp) supports a reduction in the funding provided
to support major events (including support for the America’s Cup), and
suggests that further savings could be found in this area.
qq) supports the proposed reduction in the budget
allocation to Auckland Tourism Events and Economic Development (ATEED), and
suggests that further savings could be found in this area.
rr)
does not support
any deferral of the ‘living wage proposal’, cancellation of the
homeless coordination proposal, deferral of the climate change intervention
foundation work, or deferral of Maori outcome initiatives.
Revenue generation
ss) does not support the proposal to increase
revenue target associated with the asset recycling / sales programme to $200
million of the 2020/21 financial year which has been included as part of both
2.5% and 3.5% rates increase proposals, and constitutes a substantial
increase over and above the target of $24 million for the same period that
was agreed as part of current Long-term Plan (LTP).
tt)
does not support
the sale of the following properties (either in full or part thereof) located
within the local board area and identified within the Emergency Budget
consultation material:
i)
R25 Alfred Street,
Northcote Point (Rosie Bolt Reserve);
ii)
R105 Stott Avenue,
Beach Haven (Rangatira Reserve);
iii) R107 Lynn Road, Bayview (Lynn Reserve / Leigh
Scenic Reserve); and
iv) land off Verbena Road, Birkdale.
uu) does not support the sale of shares in
Auckland International Airport (AIAL) and / or Ports of Auckland (POAL).
vv) does not support the exiting of gyms, holiday
parks or early childhood education centres (such as Kauri Kids), as these
entities provide a revenue source for council and provide important community
services.
ww) does not support the proposal to reduce the
provision of golf courses, unless there is a guarantee that all of the
underlying reserve land is retained for environmental or recreational
purposes in line with the underlying reserve classification.
xx) does not support the optimization or
rationalization of community facilities as a means to achieve budget savings,
as if changes to a specific facility are anticipated, such changes should be
determined by the local board as part of a needs assessment or masterplan
process in order to provide the best outcome for the community.
CARRIED
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