Cardinia Shire

By Melissa Grant
CARDINIA Shire councillors are focusing on reductions in debt and rate rises as the new financial year approaches.
Civic leaders have highlighted their top projects and vowed to keep spending to a minimum in light of the economic downturn.
Bypasses of Kooweerup and Lang Lang and solving Pakenham’s parking woes emerged as the councillors’ priorities during a budget briefing last fortnight.
They are yet to decide how hard ratepayers will be hit, but the previous council flagged a seven per cent rate increase for 2009/10 when it announced last year’s 5.8 per cent rise.
Central Ward councillor Collin Ross said all councillors agreed there was a strong need for a debt reduction strategy.
“Now is the climate to reduce debt,” he told the Gazette.
“At the moment we take $37 million in rates and we owe $44 million. If we get that equation under 100 per cent then we can borrow in our own right.”
Ranges Ward councillor Ed Chatwin said a debt reduction strategy formed a major part of the budget process and the council’s direction.
He said it was disappointing that five councillors agreed to accept a tender for the Webster Way tennis complex just three days after the budget briefing.
Cr Chatwin requested to have the project postponed for two months so it wouldn’t affect the budget process.
Port Ward Councillor Stuart Halligan said keeping rates to a minimum and providing necessary infrastructure was a difficult juggling act.
“We’re all mindful of people hurting, we’re mindful that we do have things that have to be done in regard to infrastructure and we’re mindful that we have to be fiscally responsible in regard to debt reduction,” he told the Gazette.
Cardinia Ratepayers and Residents’ Association (CRRA) president Gloria O’Connor said the way the council calculated rate rises was a concern.
“The worry is they work out how much money they need and then strike the rates on that basis,” she said.
“With your income you get your income and then decide if you can buy something new. It’s the other way around with the council they line-up the projects that they want to do first.
“The rates are not tied to any firm thing like the consumer CPI (Consumer Price Index) or CPI for councils.”
Mrs O’Connor urged the council to keep rate increases as low as possible, in light of the economic climate, or risk having more defaults on rates.