City of Newcastle is planning to deliver 274 projects and forecasting a fifth consecutive surplus as it releases its draft Budget for the upcoming financial year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 2026\/27 Budget will invest $128.5 million in infrastructure to deliver everyday benefits for the community while also completing major projects like the Western Corridor road upgrades and the city\u2019s largest ever children\u2019s playground at Foreshore Park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CEO Jeremy Bath said a commitment to responsible financial management means City of Newcastle can maintain its high level of service and infrastructure delivery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter many years of measured and deliberate decision-making, Council is well placed to continue investing sustainably in Newcastle\u2019s future,\u201d Mr Bath said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCity of Newcastle will spend $458 million in the coming financial year, delivering important services and infrastructure for the community, from Bar Beach to Beresfield and everywhere in between.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re also forecasting a modest $1.4 million surplus, which means we can confidently commit to the high level of service delivery the community expects, while also being well positioned to weather unforeseen challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Councillors will vote to place the 2026\/27 draft Budget and Operational Plan on public exhibition for community feedback at Tuesday night\u2019s Council meeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deputy Lord Mayor Charlotte McCabe encouraged the community to have their say on the proposed plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCommunity feedback plays an important role in everything we do, and inviting the community to have some input on the plan gives people an opportunity to influence what we\u2019ll deliver across Newcastle,\u201d Cr McCabe said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTaking the time to get familiar with the plan is a great way for people to learn more about what Council does to make Newcastle a better place, and to understand what is proposed for the next 12 months.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Highlights of the Budget include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mr Bath said the Budget strikes the right balance between renewing and maintaining existing infrastructure assets across Newcastle and delivering major projects that will have an impact on people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur road renewal and upgrade program covers everything from improving hundreds of local streets to finishing Council\u2019s largest ever road project at Wallsend,\u201d Mr Bath said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere is continued investment in affordable housing, delivering active transport and improving changerooms, lighting and drainage at our sportsgrounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re also focussing on the natural environment with more new street and park trees, bushland and watercourse improvements, coastal management actions and ongoing work at Blackbutt Reserve. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur commitment to climate action includes a city-wide community battery project, repairing the Mitchell Street seawall, and city-wide stormwater upgrades as we help make Newcastle more resilient in years to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re continuing to invest in services our community expects including reliable waste services, fast development application processing times and high-quality cultural spaces like our libraries, theatres and art gallery.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Executive Manager Finance & Property and Acting Chief Financial Officer Scott Moore said City of Newcastle is maintaining its status as the Hunter\u2019s most financially sustainable council.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe have delivered nine budget surpluses in the past 12 years, and this Budget sets us up to do so once again,\u201d Mr Moore said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt has been developed so we can continue to meet the changing needs and expectations of our community, while ensuring we\u2019re financially healthy now and into the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is incumbent on City of Newcastle to spend ratepayer money responsibly, and savvy long-term financial planning across more than a decade has us well-placed to continue delivering a high level of service for the community while ensuring we give them the best value for money we can.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
City of Newcastle is planning to deliver 274 projects and forecasting a fifth consecutive surplus as it releases its draft Budget for the upcoming financial year. The 2026\/27 Budget will invest $128.5 million in infrastructure to deliver everyday benefits for the community while also completing major projects like the Western Corridor road upgrades and the … Continue reading “Balanced budget supports strong future for Newcastle”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38607","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newcastle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38607","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38607"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38607\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38608,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38607\/revisions\/38608"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38607"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38607"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38607"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}