BendigoWeekly www.bendigoweekly.com.au
ISSUE 1042 FRIDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2017
Stage is set for a king THERE is a double delight on tonight at Victory Christian College. Hot on the heels of the show last night, students are performing two shows this evening. The Jungle Book Junior kicks off at 6.30pm, with The King and I following at 7.30pm. VCC is at 6 Kairn Road, Strathdale and tickets are available online at www.vcc.vic.edu.au or on the door.
CAP CRISIS Photo: ANDREW PERRYMAN
By SHARON KEMP
BENDIGO is facing a shortfall of $194 million in revenue over 10 years as a result of rate capping. The figure is based on revenue the City of Greater Bendigo has forecast it needs to implement the full high level concept of being the world’s most liveable community. But the Victorian government committee hearing evidence in Bendigo this week questioned whether the City of Greater Bendigo should return to a core business of looking after municipal assets and
Push for city focus on core business
give up discretionary services. “Councils are going to have to decide whether you provide everything to everyone and what everyone would want, or whether you stick to your core business,” said Bendigobased upper house member for Northern Victoria, Luke O’Sullivan. “If you were to put everything into place that is in that document, you would probably be increasing rates by six or seven per cent,” he
said, referring to the council’s liveable communities plan. Council chief executive Craig Niemann had testified that previous moves to divest some services, such as Home and Community Care Services, had prompted extreme community objection. “We are still in that service,” he said. Mr Niemann said the rate cap took decision making out of the
hands of elected councillors who were best placed to decide what the community needed. As well as the rate cap, he said the pattern of state government shifting costs on to local government, mostly for services for which state funding had expired, was eroding the share of funds it had to spend on discretionary projects. Those discretionary projects could include new lights at sports
ovals, a new kitchen in a hall, or bigger infrastructure such as an aquatic centre. He said the bigger projects such as sporting facilities, theatres, art galleries and libraries were regional infrastructure that were also used by residents in neighbouring shires that could not afford to build their own. Mr Niemann said those shires were having a hard time adhering to mounting compliance under the Local Government Act, and Bendigo’s council was duty-bound to support them by sharing its own policies.
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■ Council looks for more land – Pages 8 and 9 ■ 56-page Property Guide inside