Brisbane residents will pay $1.05 a week more for rates as a result of a 4.5 per cent average increase detailed in the city's $3.1 billion budget handed down today.
The figures include a 0.7 per cent one-off CPI increase and 1.9 per cent for the carbon tax, Lord Mayor Graham Quirk said today.
Lord mayor Graham Quirk goes over budget papers today.Credit: Katherine Feeney
The 4.5 per cent rise will leave ratepayers an extra $13.63 out of pocket per quarter, or $1.05 a week, but the remission ceilings for pensioners have been raised to help soften the blow, jumping from $800 to $836 for full pensioners, spread over 48,000 properties.
Despite warnings from the federal government not to blame the anticipated rates rise on the carbon tax that comes into effect from July 1, the lord mayor said the tax would contribute $15.8 million to council's cost, through "green tape", inflation, human resourcing and landfill charges in the coming financial year.
Cr Quirk outlined other considerable shortfalls associated with flood recovery, forecasting more than $100 million of council's $400 million flood recovery bill would have come from the council's bottom line.
Council will spend an additional $88 million on flood recovery works this year, including $48 million on road repairs, adding to the $164 million on flood recovery works to date.
Despite the outgoing costs, council aims to save $41 million over the next year, helped by a $1.3 billion investment strategy expected to deliver a $6 million dividend this year which would help cover council's ballooning borrowings program.
Net debt has increased to $1.99 billion against $19.8 billion in assets, with the bulk of borrowings going to the $1.5 billion Legacy Way - formerly Northern Link - and other major infrastructure projects outlined in the lead-up to the local government elections.
New infrastructure spending includes $1.24 billion for roads and bikeways, $500 million for public transport and investment, $20 million for the Shorncliffe Pier upgrade and $210 million to keep Brisbane clean and green concentrated on new cleaning equipment, maintenance and graffiti enforcement.
"But we are also looking after our local roads as well with an unprecedented $108 million on suburban road resurfacing along with other major road upgrades," Cr Quirk said.
There is also money for major suburban road upgrades including $8.5 million to start work on the $70 million second stage of the Kingsford Smith Drive upgrade, $11 million for Inala and King Avenue in Willawong, and $10.5 million for major intersections around the city.
But the lord mayor said the plan also included forecasts for 343,000 new jobs in Brisbane within the next decade, largely focused in the resources sector, which would see Brisbane double its economy to $217 billion by 2032.
He said the Lord Mayor's Economic Development Steering Committee would help facilitate the growth through a suite of initiatives valued at $15.9 million, including $830,000 to the Brisbane ambassadors program, $2 million to market Brisbane as an events destination and $1 million for the "jobs-driven" digital strategy focused on small- to medium-sized business owners to improve competitiveness.
Other budget highlights:
- $3.6 million to the new city plan over the next two years to account for population growth and new jobs;
- $7 million for the Vibrant Laneways program which includes updating current laneways and beginning works on new ones including Hudson and Eagle lanes in the CBD;
- $3.6 million for 45 local parks upgrades, including new parks at Milton and Tennyson;
- $42 million to build the first 90 of 360 new air-conditioned and wheel-chair accessible buses;
- $1 million to start construction on Milton's new CityCat terminal; and
- $200,000 for Brisbane's first free inner-city ferry loop, known as the Brisbane Hopper.