A $4.3 million allocation to rebuild the demolished Church Street Children’s Centre in West Footscray is the big-ticket item in Maribyrnong council’s proposed 2018-2019 annual budget.
The Draft Annual Budget and Strategic Resource Plan 2018-2019, due to be tabled at Tuesday night’s council meeting, predicts total expenditure of $132.6 million from projected revenue of $148.6 million.
The council will raise rates by 2.25 per cent, the maximum amount allowed by the state government.
Eligible pensioners will receive rates rebates up to a maximum of $189.
Parks, open space and streetscapes will receive $8.2 million, while a further $8.2 million will be spent on roads and $2.1 million on footpaths and cycleways.
The council, finally debt free after years in the red, has elected to run a surplus in preparation for future big-ticket spends such as the proposed upgrade of the Maribyrnong Aquatic Centre and RecWest Footscray.
A “Message from the Mayor and CEO” included in the draft budget notes the budget includes more than $60 million on capital works.
“We’re proud to deliver a fiscally responsible budget that plans for the long-term and keeps costs down,” it states.
“There are the usual challenges we’ve had to meet with this budget – the maintenance of aging infrastructure, planning for rapid population growth and maintaining excellence in program and service delivery – all within the 2.25 per cent rate cap imposed by the Victorian Government.”
A Facebook Q&A session on the budget will be held from 6.30pm on Wednesday, May 2.
Submissions close on May 25 and will be heard on June 6.
Maribyrnong councillors will meet on June 26 to adopt the final budget.
