Residents of Rodney District are rallying to fight proposals for rates rises of up to 26 per cent for townships soaking up Auckland's population growth.
Council finance chairman Grev Walker says the proposed rates rises are a "punishing blow" and he is opposing them with councillors Suzanne Weld
and Wayne Walker.
Proposals like 13 per cent for rural properties and 18 to 26 per cent for homes with water and sewage services are causing disbelief in Helensville, Parakai, Warkworth, Wellsford, Snells Beach and Algies Bay and Omaha, he says.
"The same folk have already experienced cumulative increases of nearly 50 per cent since 2005.
"Proposed metered water charges would mean a leap of 62 per cent in two years."
Helensville Residents Association secretary Scott Osmond said his house rates had already risen 36.3 per cent over the past three years.
Rates were higher in Helensville than comparable-value properties in Orewa, Te Atatu and Birkenhead.
"It's crippling us and the council should be looking at alternatives."
Mr Osmond said the township's water supply had been upgraded after complaints but a new wastewater treatment plant was still far off.
Omaha Beach Community president Graham Painter said the district council had taken more than $15 million in rates from the township in five years.
Residents saw a fraction of it spent on improvements and were paying a stormwater levy without receiving a stormwater system, Mr Painter said.
The council says the proposals mean an average rates rise of 13 per cent for the district's rural and townships properties and an average of 11 per cent for Hibiscus Coast properties.
Rodney Mayor Penny Webster said proposed increases would take residential property rates to an average of about $2500.
Increases were higher than she would like but this was a case of the council needing to do much with little.
It would spend about $230 million next year, the equivalent of about $5500 per property, Mayor Webster said.
"I believe that people realise we have issues such as the provision of wastewater services to 15 or more sizeable towns being impossible for local ratepayers to fund.
"That's why we are pushing hard for the Government funding for these sorts of projects."
The draft budget will be open for public comment for a month from this Friday.
