The Hunter River Times

BY JEM ANSHAW

Transparency has been important to the current cohort of Muswellbrook Shire councillors, especially when it comes to the financial position of council.

This is why they opted to start hosting budget breakfasts for the community to receive an update on where projects are up to and where money is being spent and earned.

“I do encourage people to come along, it’s the staff laying out the bare facts about what is actually happening at council, it’s not a misconstrued or smoke screens or ‘this is what we want you to see’, it’s bare facts, and it’s letting people know where we’re at with projects and a timeline moving forward,” Mayor Steven Reynolds said.

The presentation started with an update to the 2022/2023 budget by acting chief financial officer Josh Hogan who shared that of the $20.7 million income generated in rates, 54 percent is from the mining sector that will need to be accounted for when numerous sites shut down over the next decade or so. Successful grants to help with roads works has boosted the general funds for the financial year, and just like household budgets council is needing to work out ways to offset increased costs of living which includes solar arrays being installed on council facilities.

The Future Fund has been a hot topic in the past few years, and director of property and place Matthew Lysaught shared there had been a very aggressive approach to paying off the interest associated with the funds’ assets. Work in Campbells Corner to accommodate a new council meeting room and public gallery are on the cards, as is continued work on the town centre projects and discussions around developing a residential sub-division on council owned land between Wollombi Road and the Skellatar Stock Route.

Shaelee Welchman, director of community and economy, gave an overview of the progress being made on projects to help the community transition through the changes ahead with the closure of Muswellbrook Coal and Liddell Power Station, and what is being done to attract new visitors and products into our economy.

Manager of roads and drainage Kellie Scholes and manager of works Peter Ball gave an update on what work is being done across the shire, explaining that due to the string of major weather events the region has had staff working six days a week for three months trying to keep up and this has impacted the funding available for maintenance.

Cr Reynolds summarised that council is currently going through a financial transformation as they work to get into a better state moving forward.

“These news councillors have come into a perfect storm; interest rate rises, inflation, building costs of material and as well as electricity costs. We’re trying to change the culture of the way things were done in the past, but to move forward so it’s more sustainable for the community and that we don’t have to keep going out and putting special rates variations that we’re seeing across the state from 30 to 90 percent,” he told The Hunter River Times.