Submissions close on Rotorua Lakes Council’s draft Annual Plan

Rotorua Lakes Council has closed submissions on its draft Annual Plan. Photo / Laura Smth

Submissions on Lakes District Council’s Annual Plan have flooded into council offices this year, with more than 1500 people opting to have their say.

The council says it is the highest number of submissions it has received in recent years. Last year only 10 submissions were received.

Submissions, which have now closed, could be made online and through letters, email and consultation events, as well as through Facebook.

Various proposals in the plan had drawn criticism as the council worked to limit rates rises in a challenging economic environment.

Among these were proposed spending cuts in a bid to save almost $30 million. The council’s debt would increase by $51m and it would have a $141m capital projects programme. The average rates rise would be 7.2 per cent.

District leadership and democracy deputy chief executive Oonagh Hopkins said it would have a final tally of submissions early next week.

As of Thursday, it had received 1500 pieces of feedback, which she said was more than it normally received for an Annual Plan.

Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell said she was pleased members of the community shared their opinions on issues that would affect them and their district over the next year.

“There were a number of important community, infrastructure, housing and economic projects [the] council is proposing to invest in over the next year that will bring long-term benefits.

“The community wanted change and affordable rates, and so we’ve given them options that sparked a good community conversation and the large number of submissions received.”

Tapsell was among those who campaigned with a “stop the spend” priority during the last election.

Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell has welcomed feedback on the council's draft Annual Plan. Photo / Andrew Warner

When asked if she thought the draft plan reflected that, she said it reflected the council’s priorities to deliver projects and services that were “absolutely necessary”, including safe and reliable infrastructure and better community safety and housing outcomes.

“There’s no doubt the new council inherited a challenging financial position. We would have needed an almost 12 per cent rates increase if we didn’t make changes.”

She said it investigated all options to increase revenue, or save money, by proposals to pause or stop some services.

“This draft Annual Plan is an opportunity to stop the unnecessary spend, then reset and realign council, to focus on delivering a better future for Rotorua.”

In response to what she thought of the criticisms of the proposals, she said she was glad the community was providing feedback, “whether it’s positive or negative”, as it all contributed to ensuring the new council could make well-informed decisions.