Pyrenees Shire Council will have almost $100,000 extra to spend on its sealed road maintenance program as a result of its rate cap exemption approval.
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Council prepared two separate draft budgets in the lead up to the Essential Services Commission’s decision on limiting rate rises to 2.5 per cent next financial year.
The successful application will see rates raised by 3.8 per cent in the shire, resulting in a $97,000 surplus to works on sealed roads.
Mayor Michael O’Connor said a recent local government satisfaction survey for the shire revealed residents’ desire to see the road network improved.
“We’ve got 2000 kilometres of shire roads, but I’m not sure how much of that is sealed,” Cr O’Connor said.
“It does allow us to do a little bit more.”
Meanwhile, Moorabool Shire Council’s approval for a 3.5 per cent rate increase will allow it to spend $400,000 on its new and upgrade program.
Around $325,000 has been proposed for a new footpath in the densely populated Maddingley, a suburb of Bacchus Marsh.
The population of the Maddingley is expected to increase by more than 174 per cent between 2015 and 2041.
Moorabool Shire Council mayor Allan Comrie said it was important to be able to fund the upgrade program.
“It (the decision to approve the 3.5 per cent rate increase) just goes to show that we did our homework,” Cr Comrie said.
