The council will borrow almost $20 million in the next financial year to complete three key projects.
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The largest chunk - $8.9 million - will be for stage one of the Goulburn Aquatic Centre's redevelopment, while $6.3m will be borrowed for the new Performing Arts venue in Auburn Street. A further $4,280,000 loan will be taken out for the Goulburn waste management centre's upgrade, including a state-of-the art recycling facility.
The figures were revealed in the annual draft operational plan handed down at the most recent council meeting. Councillors have been having briefing sessions on the plan since late last year.
Corporate and community services director Brendan Hollands said the document again included a "massive" infrastructure program totaling more than $100m in capital works.
The council is awaiting the Joint Regional Planning panel's approval of the three-stage $49m aquatic centre's redevelopment. But it has set aside $7m from its own coffers in 2019/20 and recently secured $10m from the state government for the work.
But the council recently missed out on a $10m Building Better Regions fund federal grant for which it applied last year. Mr Hollands said staff were yet to hear back the reasons for this but would reapply.
"We're obviously going through alternative sources now but (currently) stage one is affordable," he said.
"We have $29 million in the budget over the next two years to do stage one so we're in a position where it can go ahead in the absence of Federal funding. But any funding we do get would be nice."
The council is likely to source a low-interest NSW Treasury loan for this and the other borrowings. This was made possible after Goulburn Mulwaree met its Fit for the Future requirements.
But there are also other possibilities. Mr Hollands said he would also investigate whether internal loans from the water and sewer funds could be used. The State Government has relaxed its rules on this practice in recent years.
"We have money in (those funds) for longer term use and it probably suits us better to borrow from those but it needs some investigation," he said.
Mr Hollands told The Post the borrowing was sustainable. Even at its height over the next four year, the debt service ratio, or the cash flow available to service debt, was 9pc. The State Government's benchmark is 15pc.
Total debt stood at $22.45m as of June, 2018. It's projected to be $21.821m at the end of this financial year, including a $1m loan for the Rocky Hill museum to be taken up in May/June. Borrowings will peak at $42,715,000 by June, 2021 but will be followed by a steady reduction in debt of $2.5m to $2.8m a year except for 2022/23 when the council proposes to take out a loan for the new community centre in Bourke Street.
Mr Hollands said overall debt had reduced significantly after paying out some larger loans in the general fund. The $8m outstanding on the Highland Source pipeline constitutes the bulk of the debt.
The 2019/20 budget returns a surplus of $7,161,834 after capital grants. Total revenue is $54,549,748 and operating expenses - $56,103,547.
The council will collect almost $20m in rates and annual charges. Once again, Mr Hollands said the State Government's rate pegging limit of 2.7 per cent, while higher than previous years, continued to be short of "real cost increases" and was unsustainable in the long term.
He believed an application for a special rate variation was inevitable at some stage to fund maintenance on a large number of capital works.
"It's only an initial thought," he said.
"If we went that way it would involve comprehensive public consultation to get all our ducks in a row first. We want to make sure there's a definite need before we push that issue."
Water and sewer use and availability charges will rise by 0.25pc in 2019/20, while domestic waste fees will increase by 7.5pc to $355 per property. The rural waste fee will be set at $135, a $15 rise on last year. A trip to the tip will also cost 7.5pc more and commercial waste collection rises 4 to 6.5pc.
The council wants its waste department to be "self funding" but the increases will also pay for a major upgrade at the Goulburn facility, enable people to undertake their own recycling.
Mr Hollands said these fees would increase at a similar level until 2020/21.
Other major projects on the books include replacement of the May Street and Thornford Road bridges at a cost of $850,000 and $800,000 respectively. The council says Thornford Road is the last remaining timber bridge in the district.
On the road front, $3.5m has been set aside for capital works, including improvements on Sandy Point Road, widening of Mountain Ash and Range Roads.
A total $500,000 has been allocated over two years for a Japanese Garden in Victoria Park and $2.5m to develop Riverside Park at Marys Mount with walkways, landscaping and stormwater drainage.
No money has been allocated to a regional hockey facility for Goulburn at this stage. Mr Hollands said although a development application was almost ready, the council would have to source grants. This would be easier once the project was "shovel ready."
The draft budget is on public exhibition from Thursday, April 11 until May 17 and submissions are invited. It can be viewed on the council's website or in hard copy format at the council chambers.
Submitters will be invited to speak to their comments at an open forum section of the June 4 council meeting.
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