Federated Farmers submission for Rangitikei District Council Long Term Plan
Federated Farmers continues to advocate that Council needs to focus on providing infrastructure and core services to the community, and not be carried away with delivering nice to have projects.
We recommend that Economic Development should be funded by the beneficiaries of such expenditure, primarily central business owners.
We also strongly support the replacement of the Managweka bridge and encourages Council to expedite this activity where possible.
As farmer compliance with wastewater, waste, water and nutrient management is funded directly by the farmer, we therefore recommend that Council should target rates for these developments to those who will be using the services.
Federated Farmers recommends that Council’s recycling depots be accessible to rural users also, given the contribution that rural ratepayers make to the rubbish core service.
Community and Leisure Assets is becoming a significant cost to Council. Federated Farmers submits that it is inappropriate for Council to fund such projects unless other businesses and funding channels are prepared to also come to the table. We are particularly concerned about the money proposed to be spent on the Marton Council Building, Empire building and precinct.
To more fairly cost recover the roading rates, we recommend that Council apply a differential to the roading rate, where urban and rural rate payers’ differential are struck at 1, commercial and industrial struck at 2 and forestry 2.5. These differentials will enable Council to obtain a greater contribution from heavy road users, therefore enabling a more proactive maintenance schedule than what Council have proposed.
We remind Council that the incomes of ratepayers will in no way increase to the same extent as the proposed increases in rates.
Federated Farmers is disappointed to see Council proposing to move activities funded by the UAGC to instead utilising the General Rate to fund these activities, given that Council notes that they are activities which will have a district wide benefit. Federated Farmers does not support these changes and recommends that Council continue to fund these activities via the UAGC.
For more information, please see full submission