Better roads, infrastructure spending, an eye to the future and no general rates rise

Noosa Council has formally signed off on Noel Playford's budget, one the mayor says will help restore Noosa's roads and infrastructure to the much higher levels it was used to before amalgamation.

But the mayor said the focus wasn't just on infrastructure and better services.  "We're massively increasing spending on the basics like roads" he said, "but we're also setting up Noosa to be truly world class in the way it allows the community to participate in the local decisions that affect their lives".

The monthly Noosa Council meeting adopted the budget on Thursday night after many months of hard work by the council team, building a council and budget from scratch after de-amalgamation.

The budget will be remembered as the day Noosa proved it could afford to de-amalgamate without a hike in general rates, while setting the council on a strong and sustainable 10-year financial outlook.

An injection of around $8-million dollars into Noosa's road network is the big-ticket item on the capital works program.  The mayor said there had been a steady slide in spending on Noosa's roads and infrastructure over the past six years, and "now is the time for us to do some catching up, to bring our roads, bridges, parks and public facilities up to scratch again."

There will also be significant funding for flood mitigation works to help protect against a repeat of the damage caused by severe flooding in 2012.

The budget also provides for some big leaps in the way the council connects with the community.

Online Engagement:  Council will soon embark on the latest in online technology to allow the community a bigger say in local issues, as well as the more traditional forms of engagement.

Community participation: The council is also investigating the concept of a panel or jury, randomly selected from the community, established independently of council, to weigh important local decisions with the help of experts. 

Mr Playford said the Noosa community can look forward to progress on these important issues soon.

The mayor said that innovation will also be on the council's mind in the year ahead, with funding for Biosphere Reserve projects that help the local economy and environment, and the council will be working with local business leaders to encourage sustainable jobs for Noosa's future.

26 June 2014