2014/15 Summary
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2014/15 SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT MESSAGE FROM THE MAYOR This year was dominated by the final preparations for the Long Term Plan 2015-25. The Asset Managers presented their plans to Councillors in a series of workshops in the August to November period. Councillors then presented their overall plan to the public in the January to March period. Submissions were received from the public and some alterations made to the plans adopted in June of 2015. The overall tenor of the plan was a business as usual vision for the future. Modest rate rises just above the rate of inflation, and capital works sufficient to keep existing assets in the current state of usefulness. Some allowance has been made for increasing standards of water and wastewater treatment and increased ratings on bridges, but otherwise it’s very much a plan that takes care of what we have got. The major change to our short term plan was a one-off allowance for Economic Development. This change in emphasis is a result of the Government’s Manawatu Whanganui Regional Growth Strategy published in July 2015. Council was involved in the study groups and general preparation for the study and we have made some allowance for its implementation in the 2015/16 year. Opportunities identified included increased Agricultural output from Sheep and Beef and Manuka honey production. Tourism is also identified as something that can be increased. Council has been seeking increased investment in this area. This may take the form of another 4 star hotel to increase the higher end Visitor accommodation and hence economic activity across the board. As part of Economic Development, Council has reinforced its commitment to Visit Ruapehu. The Council’s CEO is now acting as the Chair of this Regional Tourism Organisation. A new General Manager for Visit Ruapehu has been appointed and new Trustees will be appointed in the near future. Overall the organisation will be rejuvenated. SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT PAGE 1 2014/15 RUAPEHU DISTRICT COUNCIL www.ruapehudc.govt.nz The i-SITE’s performance has been significantly improved since Council took over last year and the sale of local items has significantly increased. The Land Transport activity has also been a focus in the last 12 months. A Contract renewal was negotiated with professional service providers last year and a completely new set of contracts has been negotiated for Road Maintenance. This contract will bring together the best of the local expertise to significantly improve road maintenance at lower rates. This enables more work to be done for the same money input. A paradoxical effect from the better rates obtained has been that the asset value of the roading network has decreased. The value is based on the current cost of replacement which has been judged to have gone down based on these contract rates. This will have no practical effect at all. Council’s Youth support activities have been nationally recognised. Samantha Arthur-Curtis went to Wellington to receive a Youth Week award from the Minister, for the Youth Councils’ efforts within their communities The Maori Council has stepped up its activities over the year. Membership has increased and members have participated to a greater extent in the activities of Council, e.g. parks, monuments, rates collection, recycling and citizenship. It is expected that their inputs will be more at a policy level in the future. The new Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act has caused a significantly greater workload for staff and a great deal more load on the public to satisfy the new requirements. During the year Council’s Environmental Manager negotiated with the Department of Conservation a contract to run the Whakapapa/Iwikau wastewater and water supply installations. The contract for works commenced on 1 July 2015. In addition, the Environmental Manager has been actively involved with the preparation of Resource Consent documents for those schemes in the current financial year. Resource Consent renewal documents for Rangataua, Ohakune, Raetihi and National Park water and wastewater schemes have been submitted to Horizons Regional Council. It is expected that these will be processed in the 2015/16 year and that the process will result in higher treatment standards for both water and wastewater schemes. The consents for Raetihi and Ohakune have involved the creation of a unique Iwi Liaison group. The group is known as the “Wai” group, and is widely admired. The National Park playground was built, largely using volunteer efforts and Grant Funding. Council provided a relatively small seed fund for this community project. Planning was completed for the Waiouru public toilet replacement during the year. Lastly the retirement of Peter Till must be acknowledged. He has worked for Council for 11 years, four of those as CEO. The retirement took effect late in 2015. We look forward to Clive Manley’s tenure and the exciting changes he will bring to the role. Don Cameron JP MAYOR SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT PAGE 2 2014/15 RUAPEHU DISTRICT COUNCIL THE CEO’S YEAR AT A GLANCE (P Till, Former CEO) Firstly I must thank Council for the opportunity to serve the people of Ruapehu for the last 11 years. Local Bodies are so much bound up in the life of the Community that it is an honour to be able to serve. Secondly I must thank the staff I have worked with. You are a great team who perform outstanding things on a regular basis. It is not an easy task that we have. It is with very mixed feelings that I approach retirement. I will remain very much involved with the Community and look forward to living in our beautiful area. How We Performed Financially Operational Result Our operational result for the 2014/15 Financial Year shows a net surplus of $1,769K against a budget of $1,476K. The principal underspending is the reduced Land Transport expenditure. This will be compensated for when the flood events of 20 June 2015 come to account. Council has also received insurance payments for the Raetihi Water event which occurred last financial year. Capital Works Programme We have completed a capital works programme in the last 12 months totalling $8.7million. Activity Description $million Land Transport Renewals of various sorts 5.9 Various minor works 1.2 Wastewater Various minor works 0.4 Water Various minor works 0.4 Community Facilities Various minor works 0.2 Overheads Computer Equipment, Software and Furniture 0.4 Plant and vehicles 0.3 Total 8.8 Public Debt Our overall debt was reduced by $1.5million during the 2015 financial year ($2million in 2014). Key Financial Indicators – Comparative Table ($million) Budget 2014/15 2013/14 2012/13 2011/12 2010/11 2009/10 2008/09 Income 32.5 31.6 31.8 30.0 31.8 32.1 32.3 31.9 Less 31.0 29.9 32.1 29.4 31.5 28.7 29.0 32.0 Expenditure Surplus/(Deficit) 1.5 1.8 (0.3) 0.6 0.3 3.4 3.3 -0.1 SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT PAGE 3 2014/15 RUAPEHU DISTRICT COUNCIL Weighted Average Interest Rates 2015 2014 2013 2012 Short Term < 1 yr. 5.43% 5.72% 6.80% 6.87% Long Term > 1 yr. 5.36% 5.45% 5.56% 6.17% Key Treasury Management Indicators The table indicates the performance of Council’s Treasury Management against the Liability Management Policy limits on borrowing and interest rate exposures. Council is well placed against all financial indicators with two of the three being below the prescribed limits and the other being near the prudent lower limit. Acceptable 2015 2014 2013 2012 Range Actual Actual Actual Actual Interest Expense/Operating Revenue 3 to 12% 4.8% 5.4% 6.20% 5.7% Total Liabilities /Total Assets <12% 8.5% 8.7% 9.02% 8.9% Net Debt /Operating Revenue 1 to 1.5 0.85 0.99 1.0 0.9 Interest Rate Exposure <12 months 10% to 40% 33.6% 21.2% 9.9% 35.8% 12 months – 2 years 10% to 40% 20.5% 28.3% 26.4% 10.4% 2 - 4 years 20% to 50% 32.8% 39.9% 44.6% 34.7% Over 4 years 10% to 20% 13.1% 10.6% 19.1% 19.1% Key Performance Indicators Council records a variety of key performance indicators (KPIs) which provide an understanding of non-financial performance. The individual indicators are enumerated in the report on each activity area. The summary is shown in the table below. 2015 Achieved Not Achieved Not Assessed Community Support 3 4 - Leadership 3 1 - Regulation 12 2 - Recreation and Community Facilities 4 6 - Land Transport 6 3 - Stormwater 4 - - Wastewater 5 - - Water 5 1 - Waste Management and Minimisation 3 4 - Total 45 21 - The details behind these Key Performance Indicators can be found on the pages for each activity. Overall we achieved more targets (45) than the previous year (42). SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT PAGE 4 2014/15 RUAPEHU DISTRICT COUNCIL Summing Up Overall this has been a solid performance financially. Revenue is over budget principally due to the ongoing insurance payments for the diesel spill in the Raetihi water supply of 2013. HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE YEAR COMMUNITY SUPPORT Grants Over recent years contestable Grants allocations from Council have been discontinued. The ring fenced grants were allocated to the Waiouru Library, Ohura Library and various Community Halls for maintenance activities. Economic Development The overall aim of this function is to facilitate economic development within the District and to promote social wellbeing by improving employment prospects. This is done through a range of initiatives.