Masterton District Council Annual Report 2012/13 Front Cover: Description: Summer Reading programme at Masterton District Council Photographer: Christine Hawker Designer: Walter Wisler ISSN 1178-5039 CONTENTS Page Organisation Structure 1 Masterton District Council Profile 2 Mayor & Chief Executive’s Report 4-5 Highlights 6-9 Statement of Compliance and Responsibility 10 Financial Statistics 12-14 Report on Community Outcomes 15 Report on Development of Maori Capacity 16 Report on Development and Financial Contributions 16 Report of the Auditor-General 17-20 Statements of Service Performance (SSPs) Overall Performance (survey results) 21-23 SSPs for Council Activities Roading Roads, Streets, Footpaths and Parking 24-27 Water Services Urban and Rural Water Supplies 28-30 Sewerage Services 31-34 Stormwater Services 35-36 Solid Waste Services 37-39 Community Facilities and Activities 40-42 Community Activities Library and Archive 43-44 Property 45-46 Parks, Reserves and Sportsfields 47-48 Genesis Energy Recreation Centre 49 Cemeteries 50 Airport 51-53 Regulatory Services Resource Management and Planning 54-55 Building Control 56-57 Environmental Health, Liquor Licensing and General Inspection 58-60 Animal Control 61 Emergency management and Rural Fire Control 62-63 Governance and Corporate Services 64-67 Funding Impact Statements 68-78 Report on Equal Employment Opportunities 79 Financial Statements 80-83 Notes to the Financial Statements – Statement of Accounting Policies 84-94 Notes to the Financial Statements 95-123 Statement of Resources 124 Map of District 125 Page 1 2012/13 Annual Report MASTERTON DISTRICT COUNCIL Masterton District Council was formed on 1st April, 1989 with the union of the Masterton Borough and County Councils. The Masterton District (with amended boundaries) was constituted from 1st November, 1989 as part of the reorganisation of local government at that time. Masterton District comprises one large urban town and a large rural area which stretches from the Tararua ranges to the Pacific Ocean coast, within the central Wairarapa region. The land area is 229,500 hectares with land use ranging from sheep and beef farming to forestry, cropping and horticulture. The population at the 2013 census was 23,352, with 18,132 residing in the Masterton urban area. Mission Statement To manage and develop resources so as to ensure the environmental, cultural, social and economic well being of the District and its people. Page 2 2012/13 Annual Report Page 3 2012/13 Annual Report MAYOR & CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S REPORT We are pleased to introduce the Annual Report of the Masterton District Council for the 2012/13 year. In this report you will find information about the performance of the Council compared to year one of our Long Term Plan (LTP). During the last year, at the governance level, the Council’s focus has been on assessing what is the best structure for the delivery of local government services in the Wairarapa. Considerable work was done in consulting on and assessing options before the three Wairarapa Councils submitted a joint proposal to the Local Government Commission. This work has been progressed alongside similar reviews of governance across the Wellington region. The Wairarapa Councils’ promotes a Wairarapa unitary authority as our preferred structure for local democracy. The cost of this important governance project has been above the budget allowed, but cost savings in corporate areas areas have been utilised to offset this. The year has seen a continuation of expenditure on Council sewerage and water infrastructure to ensure the community is well served by those vital assets into the future. The Homebush sewerage project reached a milestone with the commissioning of the new ponds and river diffuser. The successful delivery of the sewerage plant upgrade has been the major focus of this Council for more than five years. It has had its challenges and the project cost is at the upper end of affordability for our urban ratepayers, but the Council is justifiably proud of what has been delivered to date. Early testing results show the quality of the treated effluent is well within consent standards, while irrigation systems to the border strip areas have been tested and will commence operation in the 2013 summer. The Wairarapa rural economy was impacted by a drought through the summer of 2013. The region has bounced back well from that, but we have not seen the growth and bouyancy that is apparent in some of the metropolitan areas of New Zealand. Despite this the Council has not slowed up on its progressive programme of infrastructure upgrades. The imperative of meeting environmental and resource consent-driven standards is a key driver and has had to take precedence over the option of slowing up and easing the economic impacts. The Council’s financial result (as explained below) again demonstrates our fiscally prudent approach to managing the business of service delivery and project management for our community. The 2012/13 year has seen the Council’s total expenditure drop back from the high of last year as the Homebush sewerage plant upgrade drew closer to completion (see the graph below). Loan funding continued to be used for this project and selected other infrastructure renewal work. These projects are a long term investment by the community in upgraded assets where intergenerational benefits will accrue. $ millions Masterton District Council - Total Expenditure 70 60 Capital Expenditure (excl 50 vested assets) 40 30 Operating Expenditure 20 (excl other losses) 10 0 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 Page 4 2012/13 Annual Report The Highlights section of the report provides more detail, but we wish to bring the following to your attention: The financial result of the first year of the 2012-22 LTP is a very good one. The $2.1 million operating deficit is generated by asset value write-downs, but when these are excluded, the Council shows an operating surplus of some $634,000 which is within 2% of the Plan operating expenditure. The Homebush wastewater treatment plant upgrade had $6.9 million spent during the year, which was 30% less than budgeted due to a combination of project delays and and settlement of the design and contract dispute issues. The programme of sewer main and lateral renewals continued during the year, with 4.2km either renewed or relined (last year 4.8km). Also, 4.2km of water mains were renewed (last year 6.2km). New 24 hour public toilets were completed in Queen Elizabeth Park, Kuripuni village and Riversdale Beach domain. Mawley Holiday Park continued to improve operating performance. The occupancy and revenue has continued to show marked improvement for this key facility for visitors to our district. The Masterton library and archive have continued to deliver innovative ways to improve customer service. Contributing to and use of SMART Libraries has opened up significantly more resources to users of the Masterton Library The roll out by Chorus, of the ultra-fast broadband telecommunications network (fibre-optic cables) in Masterton continued during the year. While the contractors were busy digging up footpaths, some Council footpath renewal work was delayed, but we will reap the long-term economic benefits to our community from better access to the internet. Local Government Elections – October 2013 While this report reviews the year to 30 June 2013, it is adopted in late October 2013 and after the elections. The departure of Mayor Garry Daniell after twenty four years on the Council and six years as mayor is a significant change and his long service to our community will be marked formally in due course. Not standing for the Council at this election have been Deputy Mayor Jane Terpstra and Councillor Judith Callaghan, both of whom have made significant and worthwhile contributions during their terms on the Council. We extend our thanks for their service to our community and wish them well. We also welcome those newly elected and returning members of the Council. The achievements listed in this report have come about through teamwork. In particular it has been teamwork between Councillors and Council staff, between staff and contractors, through working with the other local authorities in the Wairarapa and with various other local organisations. We wish to sincerely thank the staff of the Council and our contractors – we can assure the ratepayers and residents of Masterton that both groups work very hard to deliver the best value for the ratepayers of our District. G E (Garry) Daniell Wes ten Hove Mayor (until 16th October 2013) Chief Executive Officer Page 5 2012/13 Annual Report HIGHLIGHTS In the 2012/13 year the Council has worked to deliver, for the residents of Masterton District, the service levels proposed in the 2012-22 Long Term Plan (LTP). The local roads were maintained and renewed, treated water was delivered to some 8,900 properties in the urban supply area, while sewerage services dealt with wastewater from those properties. Stormwater systems functioned when needed, the urban transfer station and recycling facility was open seven days per week throughout the year, rubbish and recycling collections were available in the urban and beach resorts and regulatory services such as dog control, building control and planning were provided. The many parks and gardens in the district were maintained and the swimming pools and War Memorial stadium continued to be available and used by residents and visitors alike. These are only some of the services the Council has delivered or supported for the residents and community of Masterton. The Council’s work programme was based on ‘Year 1’ of the 2012-22 Long Term Plan (LTP). Apart from a few exceptions, the work programme laid out in that plan has been largely completed and the following information describes some of the major aspects.