Give Us Your Thoughts On Our Future

Council provides a wide range of services and facilities to the community, from roads to footpaths, to drains, parks, pools, and libraries.  We also provide community buildings, environmental services (rangers, illegal dumping squad, graffiti removal, bushcare) neighbourhood renewal and child care.  We know that while some services, like roads and drainage, affect everyone, other services are only used by some members of the community. We would like to which of these services you value the most, and why.  This will help us to make sure that the services most important to our community are delivered well.

A key aim in developing the Community Strategic Plan was setting priorities for the next 20 years.  These priorities focus on sustainability; economic, environmental, social and on ensuring that Penrith grows into a Regional City we will be proud to live and work in.  The priorities were developed through consultation with the community and staff, but clearly we couldn't speak to everyone.  We would like to know what you think we should be focussing on.  Did we get it right or are there key issues that we haven't identified?  These key issues don't have to be just things that Council is responsible for, in fact in most cases we'll need to work with other agencies.  They should b issues that are critical to you.  They might include better transport networks, climate change, more local jobs, cleaner air and water or a robust economy. 

Please tell us what you think.

Council has a limited budget to spend on the infrastructure which supports our services including roads and footpaths, drains, buildings and parks and sporting grounds.  Our assets are like your house, the better we maintain them, the better they work, the better they look and the longer they last.  We know, though, that some areas need new infrastructure such as footpaths and parks, so we can't spend all our money on maintenance.  It is important that we spend enough on our assets to keep them safe to use, but spending more than this will mean they provide a better service, last longer and (particularly in the case of roads, parks and public spaces) are more pleasant to use.  This higher level of maintenance, however, costs more, which means we have less to spend on other things.  Should we aim for a higher standard or is safety enough?  Finding this balance is a big challenge for Council, and we would value your input.

Our community and Council are facing some significant financial challenges over coming years and together we need to start looking at how to solve them.  One option is to look at increasing the cost of some Council services.  What services would you be prepared to pay extra for?