Seniors lose rate debate

St John’s residents to pay on properties this year

Written by STEVEN BURKE.- Wangaratta Chronicle - 18 Feb 09

PROTEST votes by Rural City of Wangaratta councillors, Rozi Parisotto and Lauren O’Neill, have failed to stop St John’s Village residents becoming ratepayers.

A busload of St John’s residents made the trip out to Edi Upper Hall last night to hear whether they would begin paying rates in the 2009/2010 financial year.

And their drive back to Wangaratta was a long one, after council passed the motion by a majority of three to two.

Crs Roberto Paino, Lisa McInerney and mayor Ron Webb voted the recommendation through, with Crs O’Neill and Parisotto voting against it.

Cr Doug McPhie was absent and Cr Anthony Griffiths had to be excused from voting due to a conflict of interest, as both his wife and mother work at St John’s Village.

But the vote was a mere formality, with council chief executive, Doug Sharp, saying council was legally obliged to begin rating the previously unrated properties.

"In our view and with the legal advice we have, council doesn’t have the discretion not to rate these properties," he said.

"Our advice therefore is that council can only note these reports."

St John’s chief executive officer, Joe Caruso, was allowed to address councillors before they voted.

He used the example of an aged care facility in the Otway Shire, to argue that council did have the power of discretion in applying rates.

"I’ve had the opportunity to talk to people within Otway Shire and they’ve agreed that if St John’s Village had have been in that particular shire, we would be granted rating exemption, as we have been for quite some time," he said.

While voting against the recommendation to rate St John’s, Cr Parisotto admitted council’s hands were tied.

"I actually feel quite sick to the stomach when confronted with this and we as councillors do have to make a decision," she said.

Cr Parisotto said while the Local Government Act didn’t appear to give council the discretionary power not to rate the properties, the matter should be refered to Minister for Local Government, Richard Wynne, so he could consider an exemption, based on the precedence that has taken place over the past 40 years.

Cr O’Neill said she would contact Minister Wynne first thing today.

"I’ll be forwarding all the information I have and asking him to make a ministerial ruling on the issue," she said.

"I feel I should have a say in this decision making process but unfortunately, whatever I do as a councillor tonight, it isn’t going to make any difference."

Cr McInerney said it was not the role of councillors to put forward an opinion on whether to rate properties.

"Our role as council is to note a legal report," she said.

Cr Paino agreed, saying it was inevitable the rating of St John’s Village would begin.

"If it is governed that properties are rateable, we are charged with the responsibility of applying rates," he said.

"We just simply cannot say, we’re not going to rate you because we like you."

Officers, legal advice supports rating village folk

Written by STEVEN BURKE. - Wangaratta Chronicle 16 Feb 09

ST JOHN’S Village residents will be hit with council rates later this year, if Rural City of Wangaratta councillors follow council officers’ recommendations and legal advice.

A report to go to council at tomorrow night’s meeting in Edi Upper recommends council begin extracting rates from more than 100 previously unrated residential units beginning in the 2009/10 financial year.

There are currently 19 residential units being rated at St John’s Village, which has been the case since 2002/03.

A further 31 have never been rated, while another 78 units are caught up in council’s valuation process.

It is expected there will be more than 200 units on completion of the "terrace" development.

Council has sought legal advice over its intention to impose the rates, after the proposal met with opposition from St John’s Village residents and Ken Jasper (MLA, Murray Valley).

If council does impose rates on the residents, it would overturn a 1968 decision by the Shire of Wangaratta, which declared the village exempt from rates.

But the report states council has received new legal advice from Maddocks Lawyers, which advises that changes to the Local Government Act since 1968 "and a number of court decisions, would make the shire’s legal advice outdated".

The report refers to section 154 of the Local Government Act, which states that all land is rateable, except if it is used exclusively for charitable purposes.

It also discusses the possibility of council applying a concessional rating arrangement to St John’s Village, but concedes the residents are not eligible to qualify for the rating concession, which currently benefits groups including Baptist Social Services and Uniting Care Goulburn North East.

"Concessional rating was adopted as part of council’s 1996/97 rating strategy and should be reviewed with the intention of implementing a consistent rating approach to those organisations providing aged and low income housing," the report states.

There is expected to be strong debate over the adoption of the proposal, with councillors Rozi Parisotto and Lauren O’Neill previously speaking out against it, while Crs Roberto Paino and Lisa McInerney have indicated they were in favor of rating the units in the same way as other homes.