REDLAND City Councillors are calling on the State and Federal Governments to provide much-needed funding to support critical infrastructure projects, as councils face increasing financial pressures due to the growing burden of cost shifting.
Cr Rowanne McKenzie raised serious concerns over the mounting infrastructure costs needed to activate new land for housing development in the Southern Thornlands area.
Recently, the State Government placed 900 hectares of land into the urban footprint, aiming to help ease the housing crisis in South East Queensland.
However, Cr McKenzie estimates that the Council now faces a staggering $1 billion price tag to deliver the necessary infrastructure, including sewerage, water, roads, and community facilities.
“The costs associated with enabling infrastructure for housing development are simply unaffordable for local government,” Cr McKenzie said.
“Our rate base in the Redlands is 90 per cent residential, with no significant industrial or commercial base to draw revenue from.
“Local government only collects 3 per cent of the total taxation revenue, while the Federal Government holds the majority of this.
“We just cannot carry the financial load of providing the services and infrastructure required for these developments.”
The pressure to provide infrastructure is compounded by the State Government’s infrastructure charges cap, which limits the fees that developers are required to pay.
Cr Wendy Boglary said that since 2011 when the LNP State Government reduced infrastructure charges for the developer’s advantage, nearly by half in the case of Redlands, ratepayers had been footing the bill.
“The Labor State Government for years didn’t increase the charges by CPI, which also added to the funding gap,” Cr Boglary said.
“Over the past 14 years, millions of dollars from Redland City Council ratepayers and all Queensland councils have been directed to infrastructure that the developers should have delivered, causing huge financial shortfalls.
“The State Government need to urgently revise and increase the charges applicably, while councils need to make responsible, long-term, sustainable financial decisions when directing funds, as there is certainly a back log of necessary infrastructure work.”
Queensland councils have long been grappling with the issue of cost shifting, where state and federal governments pass on the responsibility of delivering services to local councils without providing adequate funding.
A recent report by the Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) revealed that cost shifting in the state had skyrocketed by 378 per cent over the past two decades, reaching a staggering $360 million in 2020/21.
“The reality is, councils are stepping in to fill the gaps left by state and federal governments,” Cr McKenzie said.
“But these services come at a cost.
“And when we’re already facing a housing crisis, we cannot continue to provide essential services without federal support.
“It’s time for the Federal Government to open the cheque book and help fund the infrastructure that’s crucial for easing the housing crisis.”
