Coast council to keep ‘faith’ over rates
From local democracy reporter Brendon McMahon:
The West Coast Regional Council says it intends to keep "good faith" with ratepayers and not impose a further rates increase based on new capital valuations for the region.
New property valuations came in higher than expected in the 2022-23 annual plan.
The council yesterday gave notice it will reset its rates based on a yield increase of 17% against that anticipated in the 2022-23 Annual Plan from revised capital values for the region. It has called an extraordinary meeting for September 21, six days after the postal vote begins for this year's local body election.
However, it says the new valuation yield will not be reflected in this year's rates, with the "status quo" to remain.
The new valuations from QV arrived on July 1, two days after the council approved the rates rise based on what it had consulted the public with in the annual plan.
On June 28 the council approved a 10% rates increase for this financial year, but excluded a planned inflation adjustment of 2.3% which had been signalled in the long-term plan.
Last year, West Coast Regional Council rates went up 30%.
The public notice for the extraordinary meeting said the estimated rateable capital value of the West Coast had increased 15% above that used to set the general rate in June.
Chief executive Heather Mabin said the council had to set its rates to meet the statutory timeframe by the end of June, although it was aware there might also be a variation with the capital value baseline.
There had been a delay at council in being able to run the new capital valuations numbers due to an accounting system changeover at the council, she said.
As it turned out the new QV values "were much different" from what was expected, Mabin said.
Acting corporate services manager Marc Ferguson said they had done rates modelling before the system upgrade, but once the revised values were received some capital valuations had increased by as much as $10 for every $100.
Regardless of the council's intention not to pass on the yield increase this time it was required to give notice to reset the rates based on the adjusted QV values, he said.
The council proposed "in good faith" to maintain what it had previously set but against the new capital value yield figure.
"We're having to stick with the original rates amount posted in the annual plan ... it's the status quo," Ferguson said.
"It's not about us making extra money with the extra QV money."
However, notification of the first rates instalment would probably be pushed out to the end of October.
Poll: Should we be giving the green light to new mining projects? 💰🌲
The Environmental Protection Authority announced this week that a proposed mine in Central Otago (near Cromwell) is about to enter its fast-track assessment process. A final decision could come within six months, and if it’s approved, construction might start as early as mid-2026.
We want to know: Should mining projects like this move ahead?
Keen to dig deeper? Mike White has the scoop.
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53.2% Yes
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46.8% No
A riddle to start the festive season 🌲🎁🌟
I'm a fruit. If you take away my first letter, I'm a crime. If you take away my first two letters, I'm an animal. If you take away my first and last letter, I'm a form of music. What am I?
Do you think you know the answer? Simply 'Like' this post if you know the answer and the big reveal will be posted in the comments at 2pm on the day!
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Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
‘Tis the season to not get scammed ...
As Christmas gift shopping moves increasingly online, scammers are ramping up their activity across the country.
Dunedin’s Investigation Support Unit is seeing more and more people fall victim to scams and other fraudulent activity, particularly on Facebook Marketplace.
There are a few ways to avoid the scams and keep yourself safe doing online trades this holiday season, says Southern District Service Delivery Manager Senior Sergeant Dalton.
🔒 “A good first step when looking to purchase something on Marketplace is to check when the seller’s Facebook profile was created. If it’s very recent, there is a higher risk that they have just created this account for a one-off fake item.”
🔒 Another important step is to make sure the seller’s profile name and bank account name match up. “We’re seeing a lot of scammers claiming their bank account name is different because it belongs to their partner or family member - that’s a huge red flag."
🔒 “When you’re selling, never trust a screenshot anyone sends you showing that payment has been made. Check your own bank account to make sure a payment has gone through."
🔒 “Quite frankly, it’s best for all parties to agree to pay, or be paid, for items in cash and in-person. Ideally in a public place with CCTV coverage."
🔒 "If you’re buying a car, check Carjam.co.nz to see if it’s stolen or if there’s money owed on it.”
A reminder: Suspicious activity can be reported on 105
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