Brisbane City Council Budget
At a Glance
The Lord Mayor has used Brisbane City Council’s 2016-17 Budget to reinforce his five point plan for Brisbane:
- Real action on traffic congestion with real projects targeted at attacking congestion;
- Delivering Australia’s most modern public transport fleet and planning for the future with the Brisbane Metro Subway System;
- A cleaner, greener and more sustainable city;
- Building our local economy and creating the jobs of the future;
- Creating new leisure opportunities and improving our lifestyle.
Headline Stats
- $3 billion Budget
- 4.7% average rate increase for owner-occupied residential properties
- 5% average increase to fees and charges
- $100 rates increase on the minimum rate for owner occupiers of units
- $1 rates increase on the minimum rate for non-owner occupiers of units
- $1.2 billion for Roads and Bikeways
- $540.3 million for Public Transport Operations and Investment
- $364.8 million for Clean, Green and WaterSmart City
- $315.8 million for City Management
- $234.3 million for Community Services
- $173.8 million for Parks, Gardens and Recreation
- $138.1 million for Economic Development and Planning
- $41.6 million for Business Activities
Rates
Due to the widespread use of minimum and differential rating in Brisbane, it is difficult to determine the impact of the Budget on rates- particularly on commercial premises in the CBD.
Given the increase in statutory land valuations in March this year, there is a risk that rates may have substantially increased for some sites. While it appears that Brisbane City Council has reduced the rate in the dollar on many sites to reflect the increase in valuations, the Property Council encourages members to investigate the impact of the Budget on their own properties.
It is disappointing that Brisbane City Council has chosen to introduce such a steep rate rise for unit dwellings in Brisbane. Owner-occupiers of units will see an increase of $100 in the minimum rate, and non-owner occupiers will see a $1 increase in the minimum rate.
The increases are intended to target the recent growth in unit dwellings in the city- many of which currently pay the minimum rate of $535 per year- however there will be unintended consequences as many older units in the suburbs will also be subject to the increase.
Infrastructure
Brisbane Metro Subway System, a cornerstone of the Lord Mayor’s election commitment, received $16 million in 2016-17 to continue the planning, concept design and preparation of a business case, with construction on the $1.54 billion project to commence in future years.
$781.7 million has been allocated to initiatives aimed at tackling congestion, including $316.2 million to commence construction of the Kingsford Smith Drive upgrade. Other funded road projects include:
- $74.2 million for the Wynnum Road corridor and Inner City Bypass Upgrade
- $17.8 million for the Progress Road Stage 4 upgrade
- $12.2 million for major traffic intersection upgrades
Brisbane 2022
Funding has been allocated to numerous projects to support the Brisbane 2022 New World City Action Plan. These include:
- $2.75 million towards attraction of new events and retention of key events like the Brisbane International Tennis
- $1 million towards attraction of conventions and business meetings
- $1.9 million to support the Investment Attraction Team