Hamilton City Council is looking at staff and service cuts to bring down future rates rises. Photo: http://www.hamiltonwaikato.com
Hamilton City Council says it now costs $5.60 per resident, per day, to run the city, with more than half of that going to water management and transport.
The council said that amount was expected to jump in the 2024-25 year to $6.80 per resident, per day for the same services.
It has proposed a 19.9 percent rates rise, the city's highest ever, to keep delivering services and will be consulting on staff and service cuts to bring down future rates rises.
Council chief executive Lance Vervoort said it was important for residents to understand how much essential services cost, and how critical they were to a functioning city.
"We want Hamiltonians to know what their council does, and what it costs. It's the bread and butter of a liveable city - fixing potholes, mowing sports fields, collecting rubbish and providing water."
Of the $5.60 per resident per day, $1.67 goes to water management and $1.37 to transport. Venues, tourism, and events, along with parks and recreation, make up the next biggest areas of cost.
The dollar figure is based on operating costs from the 2022-23 annual report and Hamilton's estimated population (185,300 people in).
Vervoort said council had already introduced initiatives to save $7 million in personnel costs and was proposing to trim its capital programme.
"We need to make sure we can meet the costs of running a growing city, while maintaining what we have and providing essential services."
According to the latest data from Stats NZ, Hamilton is also now New Zealand's fastest-growing city.
"The reality is that more people are deciding to call Hamilton home," Vervoort said.