Council Meeting Summary May 2022

Published on 30 May 2022

Snowy Valleys Council met for its May 2022 ordinary council meeting on Thursday 19 May. The meeting was held in Council Chambers Tumut and via video link.  The meeting was open to members of the public and was livestreamed on Council’s YouTube channel.

Mayor Ian Chaffey said he was pleased with the obvious thought and research that had been done by Councillors to inform the debate around the items up for discussion.

“It’s pretty pleasing to see the way council is functioning and while there are still some issues out there that we will address over a period of time, it’s starting to gel as an organisation and I think that once we can get the comradery going not only within the Councillors but also within the wider organisation I think that it stands us in good stead for the future,” he said.

The meeting began with a new notice of motion to reduce and refund fees already charged to schools for utilising council’s open spaces.

Following discussions, Councillors agreed that schools be afforded the same status as sporting clubs, and to refund schools for any open spaces fees exceeding $500, with a commitment to meet the shortfall in this year’s budget using contributions from several councillor’s 2021/22 training budgets.

Councillors also confirmed their commitment to consider changes in income and expenditure as part of the June adoption of the 2022/23 Fees and Charges and other documents in the Integrated Planning and Reporting (IP&R) suite.

Councillors discussed and agreed to implement the 2022 Determination of the Local Government Remuneration Tribunal of a 2% increase to the fees payable to Councillors for the period 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023. An increase to the Mayoral fee was not supported.

It was also determined to pay superannuation to Councillors from 1 July 2022 at the applicable superannuation guarantee percentage rate for 2022/23 of 10.5%.

A review of the organisational structure and a report from the Audit Risk and Improvement Committee on the immediate business continuity risks was discussed.  Council determined a new senior leadership and functional structure for the organisation and endorsed the undertaking of appropriate recruitment arrangements.

Mayor Chaffey said, “It is a requirement of the local government Act that within 12 months of a new council being elected that the council review and where required re-determine the organisational structure.

“It is this council’s opinion that we need to get into that part of the process as part of the forthcoming adoption of the fees and charges for the upcoming year and taking into account the fact that council will have to make a decision on the amount of the Special Rate Variation to be applied in the forthcoming year,” Cr Chaffey explained.

“The general consensus was a three-director system, which will give us a level of strategic ability and an opportunity of achieving outcomes and efficiencies into the future that will stand us in a better stead.”

One of the major issues that came up in the meeting was a late report on the Evacuation and Multi-purpose facility and its ongoing future.

Council received a report on the outcomes of the Due Diligence exercise compiled by staff at the completion of the project planning phase, as part council’s project governance framework.

The updated cost plan within the Due Diligence report identified a rise in project estimates for the Evacuation and Multi-purpose facility, slated for installation at the Bull Paddock, from $10,685,333 to $16,511,150 based on current plans and increased construction costs.

Mayor Ian Chaffey said the escalating costs were totally unacceptable to the council.

“We’re not in the position to fund the shortfall in capital expenditure and as such council has made a recommendation that we reinvestigate the issue with the view of relocating the facility and identifying exactly what the potential user requirements are, to prevent cost overruns,” he said.

Other matters discussed included:

• Requesting that the Local Traffic Committee review the current Black Spot speed camera locations and identify any additional locations in the SVC area
• Agreeing to investigate improvements to Tumut recreational reserves in consultation with relevant stakeholders
• Agreeing to sell off vacant land in Khancoban at a public auction at a time and place to be determined
• Reviewing several Development Applications; some being determined while others were deferred
• Adopting the Revenue, Expenditure and Capital Budget adjustments as noted in the March Quarterly Budget Review
• Receipt of the April 2022 Statement of Investments

Business documents and the live video recording of the Snowy Valleys Council May 2022 Ordinary Meeting can be viewed on council’s website at www.svc.nsw.gov.au/19-May-2022.

The next Ordinary Meeting of Council will be held on Thursday 16 June 2022, starting at 2pm. The agenda and business papers will be available closer to the meeting date.

-ENDS-