...and 25/26 Operational Plan, Budget and Revenue Policy on Public Exhibition
Key strategic documents that outline Council's commitment to maintaining and building a strong, vibrant and sustainable future for the Leeton Shire community are now on public exhibition following endorsement by Council at its first Ordinary meeting in May.
Feedback is being invited from ratepayers and residents.
The documents include the DRAFT 2025-2029 Delivery Program & Long-Term Financial Plan, and the 2025/26 Operational Plan, Budget and Revenue Policy (including Fees & Charges) and should be read alongside Council's Asset Management Strategy and Workforce Plan.
The DRAFT Delivery Program and Operational Plan (DPOP) is the first for this term of Council, developed in response to the Community Strategic Plan – Leeton On The Go Towards 2035 which was endorsed in February 2025 following consultation with the community.
Mayor Cr George Weston said that Council considered carefully what the community said were their wants and needs and believes the DRAFT DPOP reflects well what was heard.
"Residents have strongly advocated for improvements to roads, housing and economic development opportunities. Residents would also like to see even greater advocacy around important matters such as water buybacks, health, policing, and more. Significantly, at this stage, there appears to be no appetite to reduce services or service levels," said Mayor Weston.
"Further, after considering the Workforce Plan which sets out what is needed to deliver the DPOP, provision has been made for additional resourcing in IT (cybersecurity and systems analysis), HR and Grant Writing / Submission Writing. To temporarily support the full setup of Roxy Operations, we've also planned to fund a small operational team (for two years only). These are all included in the DRAFT DPOP," he said.
Being an asset heavy organisation, Council will ensure its infrastructure, valued at $561M, is maintained for current and future generations, which includes addressing a $22.72M backlog by $8.54M over this term.
Maintaining the discipline of getting ahead of the backlog is not easy as Leeton Shire Council remains financially unsustainable and has now got to the point of needing urgent intervention as Council will exhaust unrestricted cash reserves by the end of 25/26 and will have to start using internally restricted cash for operational purposes, which is not prudent.
Mayor George Weston said Council intends to only progress the 'nice to haves' if full grant funding can be found or once the Council has a clear and adopted path in place regarding Council's financial sustainability.
"We know there will be lots of debate about what is nice and what is essential – so this is where the community's feedback is so important to Council," he said.
Another action in the DPOP aimed at addressing the financial situation includes continuing Service Reviews. For 2025/26 the focus will be on Parks & Open Spaces and Roads. Service reviews cost time and money.
There is also provision for Stage 2 of the work being done by Professors Joseph Drew, Masato Miyazaki and Yunji Kim of University of Newcastle. The team is currently undertaking a review of Council's finances which will be completed in July 2025. It is anticipated their report will be the starting point for many more rounds of conversations between July and December on how to get back on track financially.
General Manager, Jackie Kruger, said Council is committed to delivering high-quality infrastructure, supporting local businesses, and ensuring that Leeton remains a great place to live, work, play and raise a family.
"We believe the DRAFT DPOP is a comprehensive roadmap for making steady progress and fostering a resilient and prosperous Leeton Shire for generations to come. We look forward to hearing back from the community about what has been proposed," she said.
Reflecting on the challenges being faced by Council and the community, Mayor George Weston said, "Leeton Shire has a bright future despite the challenges of water buybacks, cost of living increases and Council's own financial sustainability. For nearly every challenge there is a solution and we look forward to ongoing engagement with our community on the best paths forward," he said.
View the DRAFT 25-29 Delivery Program & Long-Term Financial Plan and 25/26 Operational Plan, Budget and Revenue Policy on Council's website at www.leeton.nsw.gov.au or on Council's 'Have Your Say' online engagement portal at haveyoursay.leeton.nsw.gov.au.
Hard copies are available for viewing by the public at the Leeton Shire Council Administration Office, Leeton Library, Yanco Shop, and Murrami & Whitton Post Offices.
The community is encouraged to provide feedback to Council on the DRAFT documents in any of the following ways:
ELECTRONICALLY (Preferred): Complete the survey on Council's 'Have Your Say' online engagement portal at haveyoursay.leeton.nsw.gov.au.
