Big rate increases for Hutt Valley ratepayers

Thursday, 27 June 2024

Upper Hutt Mayor Wayne Guppy accepts a rate increase of 19.93% will see some ratepayers struggle.

Ratepayers in both Upper and Lower Hutt are facing a once in a generation rate increase, with both councils struggling financially.

Prior to its meeting on Thursday, Upper Hutt Mayor Wayne Guppy said an increase of 19.93% was significant and he accepted that for many locals, it would have a major financial impact.

“No one is denying that it will not be tough, we [councillors] are all ratepayers as well.”

Although the council had slightly reduced rate increases over the life of their 10-year plan, Guppy said that in the current economic climate, further large increases could not be ruled out.

“If you think back three years, we were predicting rate increases of 5 or 6%.”

The 19.93% increase for residential ratepayers equated to an average weekly increase of $13.83.

Guppy, who has been mayor for 23 years, said that this year’s plan had been the most challenging he had dealt with.

“This has been the toughest one ever, there is no doubt about that.”

Paul Fabian organised a petition calling on the Upper Hutt City Council to abandon plans to massively increase rates for home-owners.

Like councils across the region, Upper Hutt is facing rising costs and interest rates, at a time when it has to invest heavily in infrastructure.

A proposed rate increase of 19.5% for each of the next three years had caused angst in the community, resulting in a petition with 2225 signatures.

The council also failed to help itself when it acknowledged there were mistakes in its draft long term plan.

The council met on Thursday, with officers recommending slightly lower rate increases than those initially proposed. Although rates for the first year remain at 19.93%, the average annual increase over 10 years falls from 9.9.2% to 8.94%.

The plan notes that the cost of wastewater had increased by $232 million and the council was committed to increasing its commitment to Three Waters.

The council had prioritised balancing the budget and that loaded much of the extra cost into the first three years.

“This means our community pays for today’s costs now, not in the future.”

For the first three years of the plan, the average annual rate increase is 17.83%.

Despite the hefty increase, the plan claims that Upper Hutt still has some of the cheapest rates in the country.

Down the road, Hutt City ratepayers are facing an increase of 16.9% with the council signalling it too needs to invest heavily in Three Water over the next decade. The increase for residential ratepayers equates to an average weekly increase of $10.81.

Supporters of the Petone wharf have been calling on the Hutt City council to repair the wharf. The council allocated $12m to investigate future options, including repairing the wharf.

Hutt City has been forced to make some unpopular decisions, including introducing paid parking in Petone where retailers had long resisted the introduction of charges.

The council has tagged $12m on a possible repair of the Petone wharf.

The draft annual plan notes there was significant support for the council’s plan to spend $1.6b on water infrastructure.

Comments included: “We need to get serious about the pipes. I support more investment in fixing leaks and additional investments to more renewals so that we aren’t just chasing our tails and fixing leaks without addressing wider issues.”

Meanwhile Porirua ticked off a 17.5% increase. Mayor Anita Baker said it had been a very challenging process, given the issues and uncertainty facing councils, including delays to water reform, steeply increasing costs for all projects, and failing infrastructure due to historical underinvestment.

'Nobody wants to see rate increases at these levels, but we can’t ignore our infrastructure. For decades there hasn’t been enough spent on pipes and the harbour is paying the price for that now. We have to invest if we want to look after our city and keep it as a place we can all be proud of.'

The Kāpiti Coast District Council also adopted its long-term plan on Thursday, confirming an average 17% rates increase and beginning rates increases at 7% starting next year to cut down debt levels.

“I want to reassure our community that we’re doing our utmost to reduce our spending where we can, as the last thing we want to look at is reducing services,” said its mayor Janet Holborow.

“I hope those in need get in touch with council to see if they’re eligible for a rates rebate or remission.”