More train services, new sustainable homes scheme approved

Waikato Regional Council will be rolling out more Te Huia train services and sooner in response to public feedback on its long term plan.

It’s one of a number of decisions made during deliberations on the council’s 2021-2031 Long Term Plan | Mahere Whānui in Hamilton on Tuesday [25 May].

More than 80 per cent of all submissions were on the proposal to extend the new Waikato to Auckland passenger rail service. Of those 1240 submissions, 95 per cent were in favour of improvements to the service with many wanting it to happen sooner than the proposed 2023/24 timeframe.

Councillors decided an inter-peak service will be trialled for 12 months, starting no sooner than December 2021 due to lead in times to complete the required work to implement the service, including confirmation of the operating cost, 75.5 per cent government subsidy and timetable.

Councillors also approved an extension of Saturday Te Huia services to The Strand in Auckland’s CBD for a cost of $10,000 per annum. A start date for the extended service is to be confirmed, pending completion of the necessary operational requirements.

During the meeting councillors considered the feedback of submitters ahead of voting in favour of establishing a sustainable homes scheme and to increase funding to Te Waka, the regional economic development agency.

Chair Russ Rimmington described the scheme being set up to help homeowners make sustainable improvements as “different and visionary”.

“Everyone deserves to have a warm, dry home. This programme will enable people to do that, and to make other improvements that will have really good social outcomes and be great for the environment too,” Cr Rimmington said.

Further work is required to develop the final scheme, with a launch expected in the latter half of 2021/22. Initially $5 million will be available, with each application capped at $15,000 and operational reviews after 50, 100 and 200 applications have been approved. The lending rate to homeowners will be 5.5 per cent over 10 years, to be paid through a voluntary targeted rate levied on individual properties from 1 July 2022. 

All up, the decisions mean a 7.9 per cent rates increase to existing ratepayers in year one of the long term plan – 0.6 per cent more than proposed when the council opened for consultation on 1 April. For three-quarters of Waikato ratepayers, it’s an increase of less than $50 a year.

“This is on the back of a zero per cent increase in rates revenue from current ratepayers last year, which recognised the impact of COVID-19 on our communities. But there’s work we simply must do and at pace, like meeting the central government’s new Essential Freshwater regulations which makes up just over 2 per cent of the rates increase in year one.”

It would have been a rise of 8.4 per cent in year one if councillors had opted to bring forward the start of biodiversity work to the 2021/22 financial year.

“Our communities told us there is a biodiversity crisis so we should bring work to protect it forward a year. We wanted to do this too,” Cr Rimmington said.

“But we had a very good discussion about it, and at the end of the day we agreed to stick with the preferred option we consulted on. We need to see the detail of government direction on indigenous biodiversity first, but we’re poised to respond with a bold plan to increase biodiversity support from year two.”

Chief Executive Chris McLay said the council had stepped up its engagement approach for this year’s long term plan, which showed in the number and quality of submissions.

“Almost 1500 submissions were received by the council on our long term plan proposals – an increase of 454 per cent on 2018. It’s clear from this that we’ve hit the topics right for the community and communicated them well.

“In many ways this is very much a business as usual long term plan, but there are meaty issues we have to get stuck into for the region,” Mr McLay said.

“It’s been a long journey to develop this 10 year plan and, while there’s still work to do, we’ve reached a major milestone this week.”

The budget decisions will be ratified at next month’s meeting of council when the long term plan is adopted.