THE COVID-19 restrictions and lockdown have had an impact of more than $500,000 on Bathurst Regional Council in the last quarter alone.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
A report detailing the impact of the pandemic during the September quarter has been submitted to council's next meeting, following a review of council's operations.
Staff conducting the review identified $485,000 in losses.
ALSO MAKING NEWS:
Council-run cultural and entertainment facilities were the major contributor, with $170,000 lost just from the closure of the museums, while Bathurst Memorial Entertainment Centre (BMEC) lost $110,000.
"As a result of the restriction introduced in August, BMEC was required to close. However, even before the August restrictions were announced, several booked shows and performances had cancelled or rescheduled to a future date to be determined. Consequently, show income is down for the September quarter," the report explained.
Council operations took a $90,000 hit in the September quarter, with expenses incurred from the additional cleaning and maintenance that was required at facilities that continue to house staff.
Council also had to hire additional vehicles to comply with social distancing requirements for field staff.
In addition to these items, travel restrictions resulted in a $20,000 loss in aerodrome landing charges, and COVID-19 stimulus measures carried over from the previous financial year had an impact of around 95,000 on council's operations.
The report also recommends additional COVID-19 stimulus measures, which would take the total loss of income up to $524,000.
The proposed measures are a 50 per cent reduction in the parks playing fields maintenance charges for winter sports, resulting in a loss of revenue of $29,389, and a 25 per cent reduction in both the outdoor dining fee and the footpath obstruction licence fee.
Reducing these fees would would result in a loss of revenue of $9875.
The report has identified variations to the budget that would assist in funding the $524,000 in costs, ensuring the budget remains balanced.
Councillors will need to decide whether or not to adopt these variations on Wednesday night.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:
- Bookmark www.westernadvocate.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Google News