Douglas Shire ratepayers will wear a 5.2 per cent rate increase under the new council’s first budget, which Mayor Julia Leu has described as “conservative and fiscally responsible.”

An average Category 1 residential property will be paying an extra $128.19 per year under the new budget.

Adopted at a special meeting by council on Friday, the new budget has an $8.9 million capital works program. 

It also has $12 million set aside for employee costs, $16.9 million for materials and services and $9.7 million reserved for depreciation. 

Cr Leu said the budget focused on sustainability in financial, social and environmental areas.

“The 2014-15 Budget is conservative and fiscally responsible, while still delivering a substantial capital works program, improvements in service delivery, new community projects and innovative economic initiatives,” Mayor Leu said.

 “This budget is based on sound financial sustainability principles and employs a strategy to return Council’s operating result to a balanced budget within the shortest possible time.

 “With depreciation a significant operating expense, Council is working with the State Government to devise new methods which lessen the burden on ratepayers to fund it and we should start to see the results of this in our next Budget.”

New projects under the capital works program include the Daintree Gateway initiative, which will see a $287,000 spend to revegetate and landscape areas of the Daintree River. 

Other projects include a $100,000 spend to beautify the Mossman streetscape, $100,000 worth of repairs to the Sugar Wharf and Port Douglas waterfront and $35,000 to resurface netball courts at Port Douglas Sports Complex.

Additionally more than $3.4 million in roads spending will see rehabilitation works on Junction Road and Shannonvale Roads and the replacement of Fischers Bridge among other repairs and improvements.

Tourism Port Douglas and Daintree will receive $430,000 in funding for this coming financial year.

Cr Leu added that the 40 percent rate rebate for pensioners would stay untouched.

Queensland Treasury Corporation predicted a rate rise of 28.45 per cent in the first year of de-amalgamation and 18.08 per cent for the following four years.