Council plans a 7.6% fee and charge hike, including a new tax on 5G and a surcharge for touch football

North Sydney Council is planning a massive 7.6% hike in its fees and charges in the coming financial year.

47 new fees and charges are to be introduced from July, including 12 “newly identified opportunities to recover costs or utilise assets.”

18 fees and charges are to be discontinued, although 17 of them are being superseded by new fees.

Among the new fees are a $7000 annual charge on mobile telecommunications operators who place 5G antennae on council poles. The charge applies for each device.

There will also be a new small room meeting hire fee at Stanton Library. Somewhat amusingly, there will be new fees at the Denison St and Nicholson St car parks for signage required to notify the existence of reserved parking, itself subject to a fee.

There will also be a range of other new fees: a specific new item for guided tours of the Waverton Coal Loader when booked by a non-profit group for example.

Another is a move from a day or weekend rate for cricket wicket hire to an hourly rate.

One contentious decision is to increase the fees for use of council grounds for touch football, specifically on the basis that it has a greater impact on playing surfaces than other sports.

Seniors will pay $45 per hour, $8 higher than the charge for other sports.

Some fees are going up by consid- erably more than the 7.6% average. Charges for filming in public areas will increase by around 10-13%. Fees for resident parking will increase by around 9% to 13%.

Other charges including those for busking, stalls at the Twilight Food Fair and hire of the Council’s Mobile Parklet for outdoor dining will remain the same as now.

Fees and charges account for 26% of the Council’s income.

Ratepayers will be spared though, with residential and business rates increasing by a lower figure of 3.7%. Domestic waste charges will increase by 5%. North Sydney councillors are scheduled to vote on the proposed fee and rate changes on June 26.

Touch football the target of unfair treatment by North Sydney Council?

Touch Football players and organisers say a special new fee singling out their sport is unfair.

In its new budget, North Sydney Council proposes to charge $8 more an hour for senior touch football at grounds such as Forsyth Park than it does for other sports hire uses. Junior touch will be charged $7 per hour more than other uses.

Touch Football organisers have accused North Sydney Council of trying to kill the sport locally.

“Why is touch football being singled out when clearly rugby and soccer absolutely tear up pitches and grounds far more with their heavy impact,” Sydney Touch Football Inc has complained in a submission to the council’s consultation on the proposed new charge.

“Touch football is the one sport that is mixed and can be played for life and where parents and their kids can actively play together. The fabric of the community is being torn apart piece by piece with these continuous attacks on touch football by council,” it added.

“In addition, there is no evidence or consultation provided to the clubs on the so-called playing surface issues,” it concluded.

Council said it has legitimate rea- sons for the extra impost on the sport.

“The increase proposed is as suggested due to the heavy wear and tear that touch football inflicts on the turf surface,” said in a reply to the touch submission. “It is adult competition games 4 nights a week on 2 marked fields for up to 4 hours each night that causes the severity of the damage. It’s evident at the end of the winter season at Forsyth Park as it’s always the worst affected ground in terms of damage to the surface.”

The Council also said that the special charges can be justified on the basis that neighbouring councils such as Willoughby also impose them.