At its February Ordinary Meeting, Council was presented with an update on Council’s financial performance in the form of a Quarterly Budget Review.
The Operating Result is generally on track with budget being forecast a deficit of $2.9M (original budget deficit of $3.7M).
Council has continued to see good success in securing competitive grants with the full-year Operating Result including Capital Grants now forecast to be at a surplus of $10M (which, including last year’s pledges, is $7M up from the original budget forecast).
These grants will be used for a variety of projects. For instance, the Leeton community will benefit from $197k to put towards the addition of a lift at the Leeton Museum and Art Gallery, enabling disabled access to the exhibition space in the upstairs area of the iconic, heritage-listed building which is under development.
In addition, Council received a $1M grant to put towards roads for immediate flood recovery and restoration, as well as $300K for pothole repairs.
Other changes include Council’s tipping fees which have seen a reduction of $150,000. This may reflect more consideration is being taken in the disposal of waste.
Lastly, with interest rate increases, Council has forecast additional return on its investments of $400k – with improvements of $250k from general investments, $100k from water investments and $50k from sewer investments.
Speaking as the Portfolio Lead for Financial Sustainability, Cr Morris emphasised that while it is excellent to hear that substantial grant funding has been secured, Council needs to continue its efforts to ensure long-term financial sustainability independent of grants.
