Bayside Council: Residents of ex City of Botany Bay lash rates hike

A proposed rates increase up to 39 per cent for residents living in the former City of Botany Bay area has been slammed as “hitting people when they are at their lowest”. Bayside Council has now made a final decision about placing the new rates structure on public exhibition.

Bayside Council Mayor Joe Awada voted on Wednesday against placing the proposed rates structure on community consultation.

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A proposed rates increase up to 39 per cent for residents living in the former City of Botany Bay council area has been slammed as “hitting people when they are at their lowest”.

A heated and lengthy debate between councillors was waged at Bayside Council’s ordinary meeting on Wednesday night on the controversial issue of harmonising rates.

Since Bayside Council was amalgamated in 2016 – combining the former City of Botany Bay and Rockdale councils – residents have been paying rates set by their former councils.

However, under current legislation set by the State Government, each amalgamated council must set a standardised rates structure by July 2021.

The council meeting ran into the early hours of Thursday morning.

Bayside Council voted last month to place its proposed new rates structure on public exhibition.

The proposed rates structure will effectively see homeowners in the old City of Botany Bay area pay hundreds of dollars more each year on their residential rates bill while homeowners in the former Rockdale Council area will pay hundreds of dollars less, because of the large disparity currently in place.

However, a rescission motion was put forward by three councillors on Wednesday night to overturn the decision to place the new rates structure on public exhibition, with the aim of deferring the matter.

After hours of debate, the rescission motion was lost eight votes to six meaning the new rates structure will go out on public exhibition from Monday for four weeks.

Under the proposed changes, the owner of a residential property worth $750,000 would see a rates increase of 32 per cent (or $217 per year) in the former City of Botany Bay area and a rates reduction of 15 per cent (or $221 per year) in the former Rockdale Council region.

Bayside Council director city performance Michael Mamo clarified the maximum rate increase proposed for residents living in the former City of Botany Bay.

Bayside Council was established in 2016.

“(The new structure) talks to an increase for those on the minimum rate of up to 39 per cent and those on the ad valorem rate of up to 29.6 per cent.”

Botany resident Anne Fenton addressed council on Wednesday and said many residents were struggling to get by during COVID-19 and could not afford a large rates hike.

“We are hurting. We have people who are without jobs because of the pandemic and recession,” she said.

“You are hitting people when they are at their lowest.”

She said rates had always been lower in the old Botany Bay region but there were reasons for that including the region being highly industrial, with large companies paying higher rates which subsidise residents’ rates.

She said the air quality was not as clean and the soil was highly contaminated in the former City of Botany Bay area which should be represented in the lower rates.

Other residents also voiced their concern that under current legislation the rates harmonisation would be implemented in a single year, rather than phased over multiple years.

Council voted last month that if current legislation was changed the council would consider “multiyear implementation options” to harmonise the rates.

Councillor Christina Curry slammed the move to introduce such a big rates hike for residents in the former City of Botany Bay.

Cr Christina Curry.

“Botany Bay has a larger economy with a greater number of jobs and businesses … our higher business rates mean we were able to keep residential rates lower.”

She said it was “unjust” to roll out the rates harmonisation structure particularly under the current economic climate.

“Many of our residents cannot afford this unjust increase.”

She said the council should push to defer the matter and get together a delegation of other affected councils to meet with the Minister for Local Government Shelley Hancock and ask for rates harmonisation to be deferred for at least a year.

Councillor Paul Sedrak claimed the average rates bill for residents in the former Botany Bay area was “one of the lowest in Sydney” and was about $710 per year.

In comparison, he said the average residential rates bill in the former Rockdale Council area was about $1160 per year.

“We are not asking for more money we are asking for rates equality,” he said.

“This is mandated by law now. So we can jump up and down … but at the end of the day this is legislation and our hands are tied.”

After public exhibition, a report will be provided back to council for a final decision to be made on its new rates structure.

“It is important to note that this process of rates harmonisation is a mandated requirement imposed on all amalgamated councils,” council papers have stated.

Council also heard that if the rates harmonisation was adjusted to reduce the former Rockdale Council rates to the existing rates in place within the former Botany Bay council area, Bayside Council would lose $28 million in rates each year or 14 per cent of its budget.

Councillor Michael Nagi claimed “we won’t be viable” if that were to happen.

A rates calculator will be available on the Bayside Council website during the public exhibition period.