Whanganui District Council is sticking to an average rates increase of 2.2% following deliberations on its draft Annual Plan.
Mayor Andrew Tripe believes it’s the lowest rise in the country for the year ahead.
The plan for 2025/26 will go before the council in June to be adopted.
Tripe said the council has focused on doing the basics well, investing in core infrastructure, and involving the community in decision-making.
The big topics thrashed out by the council in this week’s deliberations were creating a standalone housing entity to grow housing stock, adopting a new strategy for Whanganui, changes to fees and charges, and increasing loan repayments.
In each case, community feedback aligned with the council’s preferred options.
On Thursday, the council confirmed it would:
• Continue to consider a standalone housing entity
• Consider all submissions and feedback to inform any minor changes ahead of adopting the draft Strategy for Whanganui
• Proceed with proposed changes to fees and charges for the year ahead
• Pay off an additional $590,000 of debt.
Operational budget changes have also been made since the council opened its draft Annual Plan 2025/26 for consultation.
This includes water levies set by water services authority Taumata Arowai to recover the cost of regulatory functions. These levies will take effect from July 1, 2025 and are expected to cost around $16 per household.
Tripe said it was “incredibly frustrating” to receive news of the levies just as the council was about to adopt its budgets for the year ahead.
“It is yet another example of central government shifting costs to local councils and communities – when it should be administered and funded at a national level.”
These levies, along with proposed Commerce Commission levies, would be incorporated into the Annual Plan budget for 2025/26 and would affect three waters rates for connected households.
To ensure full transparency, the levies would be identified on rates notices.
However, they would not increase overall rates due to additional income from other council revenue streams.
The Annual Plan will be adopted on June 26, with the plan taking effect from July 1.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air
