Our 2022/2023 Annual Report was adopted by the Council in October, outlining our overall performance for the year covering 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023.
We have successfully continued to deliver essential services and projects to the community, during a time of significant legislative, economic and political change and uncertainty. Late in 2022, the management challenges were then pushed to the side as an atmospheric river event brought five days of heavy rain, causing flooding, evacuations, and significant damage to infrastructure.
While all of that was going on, we were able to fully achieve or nearly achieve 73% of our performance targets and successfully progress and complete several key projects across the District.
We delivered new water treatment plants to enhance the safety and quality of drinking water in the settlements of Motueka, Pōhara, and Dovedale.
Getting around our District took another step forward as the Walking and Cycling Strategy slowly became a reality and the infrastructure was put in place for the new regional bus service.
The Golden Bay Grandstand officially opened in January 2023. The Motueka Library / Te Noninga Kumu celebrated its first birthday, enjoying increased patronage and a number of national awards.
Despite the challenges we faced, we were able to end the year with a financial operational surplus as planned, which we use to fund our ongoing costs and future capital projects. The net external debt position of $201.2 million was below the planned forecast debt of $238.6 million, with rates revenue increases also remaining within the agreed cap of 5.05%.