ECan confirms 10% rates rise

Ratepayers across Canterbury will face a 10% average rates hike after Environment Canterbury adopted its 2023/24 annual plan on Wednesday.ECan chairperson Peter Scott said the council tried to strike the right balance between affordability and what needed to be done.During deliberations, it trimmed spending in some areas to keep the annual plan at 10%.“We took a hard look at our work programmes and managed to find considerable savings, however, have still had to pass on some costs to the community,” Scott said.A 4.6% rate rise had been signalled in the current long-term plan, but the council introduced a bus fare trial, public transport improvements, and a flood recovery programme last year which added to the rates bill.Without a public transport service in the Ashburton District to impact rates, Mid Canterbury/Ōpākihi councillor Ian Mackenzie has previously said the rise would be around an 8% average in the Ashburton District.Based on the sample properties provided by ECan, the rates for an Ashburton rural property worth $4,760,000 will go up from $1941 to $2101 – a $159.42 (7.5%) hike.An Ashburton urban property worth $430,000 will have its rates go from $296 to $308 – a $12.18 (4%) increase.Looking ahead to its 2024-34 long-term plan, councillor John Sunckell said the council faced ‘‘a tsunami’’ of legislative requirements which would put pressure on staff.