Mayoral statement - Councillor and staff workshop
Councillor workshop in February 2025
The purpose of this statement is to advise our community of the agenda and outcomes of the Councillor workshop held on 5-7 February.
Ku-ring-gai Councillors and senior staff meet annually to deal with important issues affecting the future of our community. As is the case in previous years, this annual meeting takes the form of a series of briefings, presentations and discussions.
The meeting is held at an external venue to allow Councillors and senior staff to focus without undue distractions or interruptions.
This year’s strategic planning workshop focused on the most important issues facing Ku-ring-gai – housing for the future and the financial sustainability of the Council.
The first item on the agenda was a five-hour workshop on the Council’s housing scenarios that have been developed to replace the State Government’s transport-oriented development rules already in place in Kuring-gai.
These options were developed under an agreement with the NSW Government and were publicly exhibited between 15 November and 17 December 2024.
Council has undertaken significant community consultation on these scenarios and engaged planning consultants to work with staff to prepare a preferred option based on the feedback received from our community.
The results of the community consultation and submissions were presented at the workshop. Modelling of floor space ratios and heights for the preferred scenario were discussed in detail by Councillors and staff.
Councillors provided preliminary feedback on the preferred scenario and a meeting will be held in March to place the final version on public exhibition.
The next session covered financial sustainability. Staff presented several detailed presentations on the budget and what is required to address aging infrastructure.
A potential Special Rate Variation (SRV) was discussed as one option to address infrastructure issues, including the condition of stormwater drainage, community buildings and other assets.
It should be noted that scenarios for an SRV have been included in the Council’s long-term financial plan for a number of years. The plan is placed each year on public exhibition for comment in April – May.
However, no decision to proceed with an SRV application was reached at the workshop. Extensive community consultation would be undertaken before any decision by Council. It was one of several options examined that would provide Council with income to address aging infrastructure.
On the second day of the workshop Councillors were presented with the results of community consultation in late 2024 on a new Community Strategic Plan. This included an overview of the community’s priorities for Ku-ring-gai for the next 10 years, and important discussions between Councillors and senior
management on how these priorities can be reflected in Council’s plans for the next four years. These planning discussions are critically important given the housing, infrastructure and other issues facing the local area over the coming years – and we look forward to presenting our draft plans for community consultation in April - May.
The final session of the workshop was an update on projects including the Norman Griffiths sportsfield project, Charles Bean Oval, North Turramurra Recreation Area, St Ives Sports Centre, Marian Street Theatre and the Lindfield, Turramurra and Gordon Hubs.
I trust this statement clarifies the importance of our Councillors being able to come together to discuss issues and solutions for our community in the future.
Cr Christine Kay
Mayor of Ku-ring-gai