Residents say on budget

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RESIDENTS were given the chance to talk directly with Swan Hill Rural City Council about the draft budget last week.

Nearly 30 residents turned out to a public information session in Swan Hill on Thursday night to gain further insight into the draft budget, in what was a first for the region.

Youth services were high on the list of concerns among residents, with the YMCA-funded youth officer role to be cut from the end of the month.

One member of the public asked council how it intended to maintain youth services without the youth officer.

The loss of the position will reduce council’s Youth Services Department to just one paid employee.

Mayor Les McPhee responded that council had decided not to take on the YMCA funding of about $40,000 in an effort to ensure a “balanced” budget.

“We are just about to begin another youth strategy, but we can’t do that on our own, other organisations have to be involved,” Cr McPhee said.

“This is a democracy and councillors decided to choose not to fund that position. But there’s always the option that funding will be made available at some time in the year.”

In addition to youth services, other issues discussed included the Swan Hill bridge overlay, the Pioneer Settlement, Swan Hill Regional Library, construction tenders and Harmony Day.

Residents queried the allocation of $50,000 to “investigate” the 4b bridge overlay option.

“Has council thought about how far $50,000 will actually get them?” one resident asked.

Cr McPhee said at the time of the last council election the matter of the bridge overlay was a high priority for the community.

He said $50,000 was simply a “contingency” fund for potential legal proceedings and that it may not be needed at all.

“We’re not saying it’s going to cost $50,000,” he said.

“The 9a overlay is in place now, we’re opposing 9a and supporting 4b, and we are investigating what is involved to get a 4b overlay.”

CEO Dean Miller said council did not know what would come out of its investigations.

“We are currently looking at that now. There may not be a legal fight, so this is just a contingency plan for the bridge,” he said.

One resident said the cut to library funding of $20,000 was something she opposed “bitterly” and a blow to what she described as a vital community hub.

“Every single group in the community uses that library,” she said.

“It’s very sad to see $20,000 gone from the [funds].”

Councillor McPhee said they had been forced to cut funds from community services to make up for the loss of $180,000 in the Federal Government’s proposed index freeze to financial assistance grants.

“We had to find $20,000 and to look at where we can find that money to minimise the impact on the community,” he said.

Further talks addressed the issue of the Pioneer Settlement, which the mayor said was running at a “high cost to council”.

Council is looking at bringing in a gold coin donation at the local tourist attraction to create more savings.

The mayor cited the donation box at the Swan Hill Regional Gallery as a good example of bringing in extra funds.

“They’re making more out of the donation box than when they had an entry fee,” he said.

Council also confirmed that Harmony Day would receive $15,000 in the 2014-15 budget, with $5000 contributed by the state government.

A second information session was held in Robinvale on Friday evening.