Mount Isa City Council has handed down its second budget of this term with a 3.75pc increase for ratepayers following a freeze last year.
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Adopting the $106.2 million budget on Tuesday, Mount Isa Mayor Danielle Slade said it was necessary last year to ensure the impact on ratepayers was kept to a minimum and now reflected what needed to be done in the months to come.
"This increase is a necessary step to take and when averaged out with last financial year's zero overall rise, it is the equivalent increase of less than 2pc." Cr Slade said.
"This is less than the 2.5pc that we anticipate our costs will go up by this year and in successive years."
Cr Slade said they aimed for higher rate for mining operations to carry more of the burden to keep residential ratepayers below the 3.7pc increase.
"The rates need to be balanced out to generate the revenue to not just cover the operations of Council, but to deliver essential services to Mount Isa ratepayers - such as waste management, water and sewer services, and road and asset maintenance and repairs," she said.
Council's revenue is anticipated at $67.7m while the overall capital budget is $38.5 million.
Capex includes major items such as $3 million for the rollout of residential smart water meters, $7 million for water and sewer works, $7.5 million for park facilities, including the Family Fun Precinct upgrade and the Gallipoli Park redevelopment, $2.3 million to improve the Lake Julius causeway, $6.1 million for ongoing road maintenance and resealing works, $4 million for the Materials Recovery Facility at the Waste Management and $1.2 million for Buchanan Park works.
The mayor said there was $30,000 in initial funding for the Miners' Memorial, expected be unveiled in 2023 Mount Isa centenary year celebrations.
"We will also spend $300,000 for a major upgrade of the Mount Isa City Lookout, $50,000 to install playground equipment at Captain James Cook Park; and $50,000 to install shade structures and undertake landscaping at Selwyn Park and the Transmission Street Dog Park," she said.
"We have held our general waste disposal fee for people taking their rubbish to the Waste Management Facility in a car, van or ute. There is also a small increase to Splashez Aquatic Centre's entry fees and we have also introduced a new category for animal registration fees - when you pay for two years of registration for a dog or cat, you get a third year for free."
Cr Slade said there were no proposed borrowings this year, so there will be no increase to Council's current level of debt.
Speaking via Zoom from Canberra where he is attending the Australian Local Government Association annual conference, Deputy Mayor Phil Barwick said it was a responsible budget which allowed for last year's rates freeze.
He welcomed new rates categories for solar and wind farms and said Council would carry a small deficit of 1.29pc into the financial year.
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Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
