L’Etape finish in November
Blue Haven developments p3
Libby’s legacy of smiles p3
More heritage houses listed p5
Celebrating local food
p10
p13
2 JULY 2022
Surplus doesn’t stop need for cuts By factoring in an estimate for the net proceeds of the sale of Akuna Street (see right) and other property sales, Council’s budget is showing a $8.9 million surplus for the coming year, but the Mayor and CEO warn it is not the time to be complacent. The surplus is further buoyed by $1.7 million in budget cuts made from the draft budget. $281,000 in additional income was also identified by the executive, councillors and members of the Finance Advisory Committee. Unlike in previous years, there were no last minute changes proposed to the budget at the June Meeting, which also approved the Community Strategic Plan, the Long Term Financial Plan and numerous other policies during its marathon five hour sitting. “It shows how solidly councillors are behind the Strategic Improvement Plan [SIP],” says Mayor Neil Reilly. “It shows a determination to do something about our long term financial situation. “This is the first of the actions that will have meaningful impact on our financial wellbeing.” Without the asset sales, Council was looking at a $7 million deficit.
The long term financial plan still sees the Council sliding back into deficits, progressively increasing from $4.5 million in 2024/5, as further elements of the SIP cannot be incorporated into the figures until they are endorsed by Council. The plan does incorporate early indications that it may not be necessary to pay off the whole of the Blue Haven TCorp debt of $45 million in 2023, as this aim was endorsed by Council on 23 May. Council has begun negotiations to pay back $28 million received from ILU sales then, and take out a 10 year loan. “Paying off the whole of Tcorp in 2023 really hit the bottom line and made us cash negative very early on in the 10 years,” says the Mayor. “By putting the SIP into action, we are improving our going concern status.” The budget is based on a 2.5 per cent increase in rates this year, which has only just been approved by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) . Kiama was amongst 86 other NSW councils which applied to increase their rates above the level of the annual rate peg (which was just 0.7 per cent, although IPART had three years ago approved a special rate variation of 1.6 per cent for Kia-
ma, reducing the shortfall). Council’s March Business Paper said the total 2.5 per cent rate rise will bring in just less than $500,000, which will be “used to fund the delivery of essential services and facilities for the benefit of ratepayers”. Of this, the difference between the original IPART approved rate peg of 1.6 per cent and the 2.5 per cent now granted is $174,451. While the budget for 2022/3 is described as austere, the cuts didn’t reach the $3 million that was foreshadowed when the draft was released. “We cut about half of that, because if we cut any deeper we would be reducing services to the community and we didn’t want to do that,” says the Mayor. “It is an austere budget necessary for the situation we find ourselves in. “The long term financial plan gives us an indication of what is coming up over the horizon and an opportunity to prepare for that. “If we make no changes to business as usual, it will result in a deficit budget sooner than we expect. “By making adjustments now, we can create a different future.” Despite curtailing new cap-
Akuna St sold
Kiama Council is to sell its Akuna St landholdings to Level 33 Property group for an amount that will be disclosed on settlement. The decision was down to one vote, with Councillors Keast, Rice, Larkins, Draisma and Reilly voting for the motion; and Croxford, Brown, Steel and RenkemaLang voting against it. “A 42 day settlement is an excellent outcome for Council,” says Neil Reilly. “Level 33 are experienced in large mixed retail and residential developments. “Their vision is going to be informed by our site specific Development Control Plan for the precinct.” The Town Centre DCP, including site specific aspects, is expected to go before the July Meeting of Council. The developer will also have to preserve a house on Shoalhaven St that has now see story on page 16 been included on the Heri-
tage List (see page 10). Level 33’s director Eddy Haddad was unavailable for comment in time for this issue. Charlie Doud, one of the shortlisted final four whose family is thought to have already sunk $5 million into the site since Council first put it on the market in 2016, says, “Traders In Purple are incredibly disappointed that Council has chosen a different path for the Akuna Street precinct redevelopment. “We have been involved with the site for many years and engaged some of Australia’s leading designers and placemakers, to propose a vision for a new civic heart,
The site will have its own DCP
one that put people first and delivered the best social, economic and cultural outcome for Kiama. “The ownership of adjoining properties [in Collins St] enabled Traders In Purple to propose a superior outcome for the site opening up connections to four streets allowing for a range of community benefits and multiple new public areas. “Our visionary proposal has been embraced by local retailers and the business community and we are disappointed that we will not be able to deliver it for the community of Kiama.”