AS you may know at least 30,000 new residents will move into Concordia and other new housing around our borders in the coming years.
This will more than double the population that would be dependent upon services paid for by Gawler residents and ratepayers.
Concordia comes under Barossa Council.
Gawler’s boundary must change so our council can receive rates from these new areas, to pay for the additional service and wear and tear on our historic old town that these new developments will cause.
The basic proposition is that we invest, say $500,000 once, to receive revenue of at least $15m every year thereafter.
Surely going after a boundary change is a no-brainer? Not to seek a boundary change would be an act of wilful self-harm, and potentially, an act of wilful negligence on the part of the council.
The resolution that went before the councillors last night (March 28) proposed that the border change investigation and application should not go ahead if the costs exceed $379,500.
This could mean that unless the cost is $379,500 or less, council won’t even look into it and we will have to pay for the 30,000 new residents.
It also means that we will have no say in how their roads connect to ours or on any resulting traffic congestion.
There are many knock-on effects if the boundary isn’t changed.
Gawler’s population is around 25,000 and there are currently 15,600 rate payers.
The council residential rate for 2022/23 is $2,006 per year.
Council has about $35.24m per year to run the town.
Assuming the population grows to about 55,000 people, and rate payers double, then at the current residential rate of $2,006, council revenue could increase by $31,293,000 to $66,535,000 per year.
But even if council revenue grows by half of that, at $15m per year, the one-off cost of the boundary analysis would be paid back in the first two weeks.
The post office has got it right, 5118, “one post code, one Gawler”.
Mick Brawn, Gawler East
