Cork City Council agreed an expenditure budget of €222.340 million for 2020 at its annual budget meeting this evening – an increase of over €55 million in spending compared to this year.
€37 million of this increase comes due to the extension of the city boundary with another €18,197,000 being general expenditure increase on the 2019 budget.
Over €5.8million of this increased €18 million will be spent on homelessness in the city, another €5.6 million of spend comes from a road restoration improvement grant, an extra €1.8 million will be spent on housing leasing next year, €500,000 will be spent on the European Maritime Day two-day conference ( which along with the Seafest festival will bring approximately 101,000 visitors to the city), €2.3million of spend is due to an increase in payroll, €1.1 million will be spent on staff pensions and a €500,000 Transport Infrastructure Ireland Maintenance Grant has provided the remainder of the spending increase .
Cork City Council Chief Executive, Ann Doherty said: “The challenge
of Cork City Council’s budget is to ensure that the Council continues to
achieve a balanced allocation of resources to ensure that it means the
competing demands across the social, economic, cultural, environmental
and infrastructural developments of the city”.
The Elected Members voted 27 for and 3 against.
Budget notes:
- Cork City Council will become the rating authority for all of the extended city in January next. Cork City Council has decided to reduce its Annual Rate on Valuation (ARV) so that it is harmonised with the county.
- Cork City Council will continue to offer its rates incentive scheme which offers a grant to ratepayers in small to medium enterprises who pay their rates on time and meet certain criteria.
- There will be no increase in parking charges in city car parks or in on-street parking. Park-by-Phone usage has increased substantially in the past year. Paul St and North Main St remain the best priced multi storey car parks in the city.
- Cork City Council is advancing a strong housing delivery programme in 2019-2021. The yearly target of 559 units is to be exceeded with over 400 of this housing units coming from new builds. A number of projects are under construction and are due to for completion in 2019 including a 66 bed scheme at Deanrock. Five other schemes at High Street, Blarney Street, White Street, Corcorans Quay and Farranferris will provide 85 new homes. Another six houses will be delivered at St John’s Well.
- Cork City Council is currently supporting 2,600 HAP tenancies.
- Cork City Council received sanction to draw down an €11m loan from the Housing Finance Agency which will be used to upgrade the existing housing stock. Over time this will result in emergency repairs being significantly reduced.
- Roads and Transportation will have an additional €6.1 million in funding next year.
- A new fleet contract next year with 75 electric vehicles means that Cork City Council will have the largest electric vehicle fleet of all the country’s local authorities next year.
- As a result of the boundary extension, Cork City Council has become a self funding local authority from a local property tax perspective.
- Earlier this year, Elected Members of Cork City Council agreed not to increase the basic rate of Local Property Tax (LPT) in the city. The members decided to set a local adjustment factor of 0%, which is the same as 2019. The additional funding of €776,500 will now also be available for the 2020 budget and is for additional tree services, operating of Tramore Valley Park and the part funding of a sports officer under an approved scheme of the Football Association of Ireland.
