2016-17 Draft Budget delivers $88.7M Capital Program to boost economy

Published on 09 June 2016

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Rockhampton Regional Council Mayor Margaret Strelow has today handed down the 2016/17 draft budget that proposes a major financial commitment to capital projects in order to drive job creation and economic growth in the Region.

Mayor Strelow said boosting productivity and keeping the local labour market active through the delivery of new and exciting projects for a more vibrant future was at the heart of the budget.

“This is the budget for the Future - it is the budget about jobs and about the economy and about stepping up as the Regional Capital,” Mayor Strelow said.

“This proposed budget will deliver $88.7million for capital works programs across the Region, including $49.2million in renewing and upgrading roads, $8.3million in sports and recreation facilities, and $4.3million to improve community facilities throughout the Region.

“Projects including the redevelopment of Kershaw Garden’s Central Precinct, the Gracemere pound were originally scheduled for future budgets but have been brought forward to boost local spend and provide more employment opportunities.”

As one of the major employers in the Region, with more than 860 full time equivalent staff, Mayor Strelow said Council realises the importance of stability during these tough economic times but is nonetheless dedicated to delivering better outcomes for the community.

“To meet the desires of our community and to take pride in our Region, we will expand our employment base with more staff in parks maintenance and street cleaning services,” Mayor Strelow said.

“There are a number of new parks coming under our control which means we need more manpower on the ground for our crews to be more responsive to our community’s requests.”

The budget also provides funding for key elements of the Economic Development Plan to be rolled out, including the Quay Street Smart Hub which fosters innovation and small businesses to grow in the Region.

With additional projects being brought forward, Mayor Strelow said Council has worked hard to keep rates to a minimum while also finding a balance between successful asset management and long term financial sustainability.

“This draft budget proposes an average total rate increase of 3.1% for ratepayers, which equates to $1.43 per week,” Mayor Strelow said.

“A surplus of $1 million is budgeted this year, making it the third year Council has budgeted in surplus, and it is planned to increase in future years.

“We have also reduced our debt by $7.1 million since de-amalgamation and it will remain steady for the 2016/17 financial year.”

Mayor Strelow said the budgeted surplus is comparatively less than that projected for the 2015/16 year as the previous surplus incorporated revenue for the reimbursement of disaster expenditure.

“We have also mapped out a ten year budget that will keep rates to a minimum and assume the current economic climate will continue for some time, and for this reason we have decided that now is the time to heavily invest in Economic Development so we can capitalise on long term initiatives.

“We are committed to taking hold of every opportunity that will advance our region and this budget gives us the very best chance of being able to achieve exactly that.

Key Highlights:

  • $88.7million Capital works Program to encourage more employment opportunities
  • $14million for the redevelopment of Kershaw Garden’s over 3 years (including remediation and restoration carried forward from current year)
  • $15.9million for the riverbank redevelopment in 2017/2018
  • $800,000 to build a new pound in Gracemere (including $400,00 carried over from 2015/16)
  • $215,000 for a new Library in Gracemere
  • $600,000 over three years for tourism signage for the whole region
  • Additional staff employed in the Parks Maintenance team to maintain key areas of the Region
  • Upgrades to Mount Morgan’s main street and School of Arts building
  • $400,000 per annum to build up sporting capacity in the Region
  • Additional $1million allocated to the Regional Development unit for Economic Development activities

$88.7million Capital Works Program to boost local economy(PDF, 507KB)

Draft Budget sees Mount Morgan among the list for major projects(PDF, 504KB)

Gracemere’s multi million budget set to include new library(PDF, 284KB)

$400,000 to build sporting capacity(PDF, 280KB)

Budget Boost for Economic Development(PDF, 288KB)

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