Help Shape Stonnington's 2026-27 Budget

We're planning for our city's future – and we want to hear what matters most to you.

The City of Stonnington currently delivers more than 100 services that make our city a great place to live - from libraries, parks and waste services, to community programs, events and infrastructure.

As we developed Stonnington Tomorrow, our Council Plan for 2025–29, our community told us what's important and what kind of future they want to see. But financial pressure is growing, and as we look ahead to the next Budget and beyond, we're facing bigger questions about how to fund that future - and we need your input.

Why we're having this conversation now

Like many Councils across Victoria, there is a widening gap between the income we receive from rates and the rising costs of maintaining key services, such as roads, footpaths, sports fields, playgrounds and pools.

The city of Stonnington also happens to have lower rates than 71 of Victoria's 79 councils - and last year's increase within the rate cap (including the waste charge) was only 1.7 per cent which equated to around 95c per week for the average ratepayer.

While low rates may sound like a good thing, this increase alone isn't enough to keep up with the growing cost of delivering services. Without change to the way we do things, we can't sustain current operations or invest in the aspirational projects our community cares about – things like revitalising Chapel Street, creating new open spaces, ensuring fair access to our facilities for women and girls, as well as responding to a changing climate.

That's why we're exploring options through our new framework, Funding Stonnington Tomorrow, to ensure our city remains financially sustainable and continues to thrive now and into the future.

The options on the table

To help us plan responsibly for the future, we're asking our community to consider three broad options:

Option 1 – Reduce operations

If things stay the way they are and we don't find more funding, we will need to prioritise only essential operations such as roads, drainage and rubbish, while making significant cuts to other valued programs such as libraries, community initiatives, sports, events and festivals.

Option 2 – Maintain operations

By increasing efficiencies and exploring options to increase revenue, we could maintain operations at the current level. Day-to-day operations would continue, but there would be limited ability to invest in aspirational things like new community parks, facility upgrades and important futureproofing work.

Option 3 – Improve operations

If we take a more future-focussed approach to making cost savings and growing revenue, we can improve operations and set our city up for the years to come. This would mean we could deliver big projects our community cares about - like transforming Chapel Street, creating new parks and upgrading recreation facilities to ensure girls and women have fair access.

The bigger picture

While this sits in the context of the 2026-27 Budget, this isn't just about the next 12 months. It's about how the decisions we make today will shape the next decade and beyond. Put yourself in the shoes of future you...