Are ratepayers really getting ‘value for money’ – especially when rates have more than doubled in the past 8 years? Is resource spending ‘maintaining’ current service levels as spruiked by the Strategic Resource Plan and accompanying Budget?
When residents have been screaming about the continued flooding in Glen Eira; the traffic congestion and need for calming treatments on local roads (ie LATM – Local Area Traffic Management) it is worthwhile reflecting on what has been happening for the past half dozen years. We feature a table taken directly from the respective budgets that outline the forecast spending on road reconstruction, footpaths, drains, and residential traffic management. We believe that this table reveals a sad story of FALLING service levels – especially with drains and the continued and regular incidents of flooding. The figures (apart from Traffic) are all in millions.
|
YEAR |
ROADS |
FOOTPATHS |
DRAINS |
TRAFFIC (LATM) |
| 2007 |
4.0 |
2.13 |
3.3 |
$100,000 |
| 2008 |
4.0 |
2.0 |
3.3 |
$50,000 |
| 2009 |
4.0 |
2.0 |
3.5 |
$100,000 |
| 2010 |
3.7 |
2.53 |
3.0 |
$100,000 |
| 2011 |
3.8 |
1.73 |
3.29 |
$360,000 |
| 2012 |
3.8 |
1.72 |
3.9* |
$200,000 |
*“included in the Drainage Improvement Program is an allocation of $968,000 for the Flood Mitigation Program (Storm Water Harvesting – Boyd Park Murrumbeena). This project includes funding of $484k.”
Glen Eira Debates 
May 10, 2012 at 11:15 AM
The figures tell a compelling story. You’d also have to take into account wage increases of at least 15% over the past 6 years and that would mean that 3 million would really be worth much less and the output would be heaps less too. The drains stat is another example of bogus numbers. Boyd Park was mainly for water storage and not to reduce flooding. You have to take away half a million which makes the total spent on proper drainage around 3.4 million. Hardly a dramatic increase when floods are still going on all over Glen Eira.
May 10, 2012 at 11:23 AM
I’m not sure that Rates have doubled in the last 8 years.How much did Glen Eira raise in 2004 and what is the proposed take this year?
May 10, 2012 at 11:42 AM
It’s heaps worse than these figures show. Check out all the bits that say stuff like “Expend 90% of the budgeteted capital works program for footpath installation”. That’s what I call creative accounting. Write down a figure and then don’t intend to spend all the money.
May 10, 2012 at 12:20 PM
It’s also worth noting that the Pensioner Rebate on rates has been constant in Glen Eira for many, many years now at $270. What the budget does not tell residents is that the State Government subsidy has risen each year. For example: in 2011/12 it was $193.40 and in the previous year it was $184.30. Hence council is getting more from the government, but this isn’t being passed on to pensioners.
May 10, 2012 at 12:37 PM
I wonder if we need to change the way rates are paid. Too hard on people who own houses (land). People living in these new apartments should be forced to pay there fair share. Fair enough they dont have much green waste but they would have demand for the other services that the council provides. Also the MRC pay subsidised rates. That is a huge part of glen eira on mates rates. Pay their share or make it a public park!
May 10, 2012 at 4:01 PM
Like Lipshutz, the MRC have short hands and long pockets. They don’t even want to pay for half of a 20 metre fence.
May 10, 2012 at 12:43 PM
When there’s a $25m debt to pay off you scrounge for money wherever you can or delay stuff like McKinnon Pavilion for as long as you can. On top of this when gesac is costing stacks in lost revenue then you’re really up shit creek. Anyone out there who’s a forensic accountant to rip this spin apart?
May 11, 2012 at 2:05 AM
Speaking of fences and our racecourse reserve. Everyone should go i there for a stroll. It used to be a special place which reminded one of the country, with unlimited views, now despite not havng the go ahead because of some old lady single handedly holding them up , many kilometres of three railed high white fencing has been cemented firmly into place so the feeling in there is now unbelievably unpleasant. This fencing appears to be to accomodate the training facility mire comfortable and it is especially ludicrous when one believes that the public is not allowed in the area when the horses are training… so why the fence anyway?????/
And oh! by the way the Glen Eira tunnel STENCH was something terrible 7 hours after the horses had passed through there and dropped their trademarks. The MRC interest in cleaning the tunnel is non existant… PROVING A GREAT CONTRAST TO THE MAN WITH THE BROOM AND SHOVEL WHO RUNS ROUND AFTER THE HORSES IN THE MOUNTING YARD ON RACEDAYS.