{"id":5633,"date":"2020-03-26T01:54:17","date_gmt":"2020-03-26T01:54:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/?p=5633"},"modified":"2020-03-26T01:54:17","modified_gmt":"2020-03-26T01:54:17","slug":"city-to-support-newcastles-community-and-economic-resilience-with-comprehensive-covid-19-plan-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/2020\/03\/26\/city-to-support-newcastles-community-and-economic-resilience-with-comprehensive-covid-19-plan-2\/","title":{"rendered":"City to support Newcastle\u2019s community and economic resilience with comprehensive COVID-19 plan"},"content":{"rendered":"

City of Newcastle has developed a comprehensive community and business support package designed to help locals through the unprecedented effects of COVID-19.
\nThe package, which has been\u00a0designed to maintain the organisation\u2019s financial sustainability, is\u00a0initially worth $5.5 million in the short term and includes interest free payment plans for rates, rent reductions on council-owned buildings, free online training packages, and a boost to the City\u2019s infrastructure program to deliver an economic stimulus.
\nLord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the package, which was adopted at last night\u2019s Council meeting, delivers both financial and social support to ensure Newcastle remains resilient during this challenging time.
\n\u201cWe understand that every business is suffering enormously from the impacts of COVID-19 and will likely\u202fbe\u202faffected\u202ffor the foreseeable future,\u201d the Lord Mayor said.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s imperative, now more than ever, that we work together.
\n\u201cOur resilience package has been informed by experts and seeks to focus on areas where local government has a clear strength and mandate.
\n\u201cMany in in our community are facing unemployment\u202fand the elderly may become more isolated for the next few months as they minimise\u202ftheir risk of exposure to COVID-19.
\n\u201cWe will further promote City of Newcastle\u2019s existing financial hardship policies and make it easier for rate payers to enter interest free payment arrangements.
\n\u201cThe City will also offer free access to digital training resources for all small business owners and their staff, as well as the broader community, to enable the upskilling and transformation of the workforce during the predicted time of slow economic activity.\u201d
\nA City Taskforce,\u00a0led by the City of Newcastle will be established to act as the local coordinating authority to oversee the future recovery phases of COVID-19 pandemic crisis.
\nThe City will also assist not for profit organisations and will expand its e-library offering in a commitment to support community wellbeing and\u00a0the most vulnerable and emerging at-risk groups.
\nCr Nelmes said the package included enhancing City of Newcastle\u2019s \u2018buy local\u2019 commitment.
\n\u201cBusinesses within the Newcastle Local Government Area will be\u00a0favoured\u00a0with a temporary change to the procurement policy which further enhances the assessment weighting for locals.
\n\u201cWe will also fast track our invoice payment to provide improved cash-flow for businesses and to keep the economy ticking.
\n\u201cA 50 per cent discount will be given on rent for all City-owned buildings for the June quarter lifting the pressure for dozens of local businesses and community\u00a0organisations.
\n\u201cWe are embracing community thinking. The City of Newcastle is a community that cares and looks after each other. We will continue to promote and facilitate equitable access to services and facilities.\u201d
\nFor\u202ffurther information on City of Newcastle\u2019s response to COVID-19 please see\u202fnewcastle.nsw.gov.au\/COVID-19
\nCommunity and Economic Package Overview<\/strong>
\nFinancial Hardship Support\u00a0– $468,000<\/strong>
\nThe City will provide financial hardship support for residents to develop payment plans for their rates. All fees and charges including interest penalties will be waived until 30 June 2021. It will also offer hardship support for owner occupier commercial ratepayers or commercial property owners who can demonstrate the reduction will be passed onto their tenants.
\nProcurement and Purchasing Support\u00a0– $535,000<\/strong>
\nOur existing procurement policy includes a minimum local weighting assessment of 10 per cent. Where possible, this weighting will be increased for the next six months. Invoices from existing contracts with local suppliers will be processed within seven days as soon as approved.
\nCouncil support\u00a0– $1,500,000<\/strong>
\nThe City will give businesses and individuals flexibility on a range of Council fees and policies to ease pressures relating to COVID-19. This will allow essential businesses and service providers to operate responsively to the City\u2019s changing needs in line with the latest advice from the NSW Government and Federal Government. Includes the waiving of library fees, returning booking fees and maintaining hourly parking rates at current levels.
\nRent relief for City of Newcastle tenants\u00a0– $732,000<\/strong>
\nSmall businesses operating out of council owned buildings will receive a cash flow relief with the City offering a 50 per cent discount on rent for the next two quarters.
\ne-Library expansion\u00a0– $100,000<\/strong>
\nExpansion of existing e-Library services including e-book and e-audio platforms, video story, movie and music streaming platforms, access to online newspapers and e-magazines.
\nOnline learning \u2013\u00a0Studiosity\u00a0and Lynda\u00a0– $60,000<\/strong>
\nPromote existing online training programs, such as Lynda, as well as expanding our subscription to\u00a0Studiosity, which provides one-on-one tutoring for school and tertiary students.
\nCommunity grant program\u00a0– $800,000<\/strong>
\nThe City will make financial and in-kind support available to\u00a0mobilise\u00a0the Newcastle community sector to respond to immediate community need, with a focus on the most vulnerable and emerging at risk groups. An Expression of Interest process will also be opened for Newcastle-based not-for-profits,\u00a0non government\u00a0organisations, community groups and\u00a0organisations\u00a0to receive funds to deliver essential local services and innovative solutions to COVID-19 created challenges.
\nCity taskforce and industry responses\u00a0– $500,000<\/strong>
\nA City Taskforce,\u00a0led by the City of Newcastle will be established to act as the local coordinating authority to oversee the future recovery phases of COVID-19 pandemic crisis. The Taskforce will initially fund an Expression of Interest program to provide innovative support to targeted local industries.
\nLean\u00a0In\u00a0Newy\u00a0– $150,000<\/strong>
\n\u201cLean-In\u00a0Newy\u201d is a social action and economic incentive app that will engage and propel local\u00a0behaviours, such as volunteering. The platform will enable social actions to be pushed out to our local community, with built-in economic incentives.
\nLocal online training programs\u00a0– $500,000<\/strong>
\nCouncil will support local small business owners and staff to undertake professional development training and accreditation.
\nCommunications and marketing budget is $100,000<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

City of Newcastle has developed a comprehensive community and business support package designed to help locals through the unprecedented effects of COVID-19. The package, which has been\u00a0designed to maintain the organisation\u2019s financial sustainability, is\u00a0initially worth $5.5 million in the short term and includes interest free payment plans for rates, rent reductions on council-owned buildings, free … Continue reading “City to support Newcastle\u2019s community and economic resilience with comprehensive COVID-19 plan”<\/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-5633","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\/5633","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=5633"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5633\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}