Summary of the Long-term Plan 2024-2034 (LTP)

Challenges and aims

While we developed this plan we considered a number of challenges, including:

• higher inflation and rising interest rates that increase our costs
• a growing population that creates more demand for our activities and services
• the increase in assets we own which are expensive to pay for and maintain
• continued need to fund storm response and improve our resilience to flooding
• finding the right funding and finance tools to deliver our plan.

This plan aims to address these challenges and the opportunities Auckland faces over the next 10 years by:

• prioritising Auckland’s physical and financial resilience
• making the most of what we have
• focusing on areas that will make the biggest difference for Auckland.

Longer-term outcomes

The longer-term outcomes we want to achieve with this plan are to:

• provide for our communities in the greatest need
• deliver outcomes for and with Māori
• adapt to and reduce the effects of climate change.

This plan also sets out:

• the outcomes we want for Auckland and how the council will help achieve these (our strategic direction)
• how we will pay for council activities (our financial settings)
• our capital spend budget to build or buy assets like roads, pipes and buildings to provide services for Aucklanders
• our operating spend budget to maintain services and activities like public transport, libraries and parks.

Rates increases

This LTP will see a total rates increase for the average-value residential property of around 6.8 per cent or $245.48 a year ($4.72 a week) in 2024/2025.

Focus areas

Our LTP delivers actions for seven areas of council services.

Transport

Our plans to manage transport over the next 10 years include:

• $70 million in operating spend to improve public transport, including bus services and rail track maintenance
• $14 billion capital spend to help fix roads and achieve more reliable and easier to use public transport
• a $50 weekly public transport fare cap for buses, trains and inner-harbour ferries.

Water

Our plans to manage water over the next 10 years include:

• more than $700 million (including government co-funding) for the new Making Space for Water programme to strengthen Auckland’s resilience to flooding
• working with central government to implement the Local Water Done Well plan
• extending the Water Quality Targeted Rate to achieve $779 million for stormwater infrastructure.

Built environment

Our plans to manage Auckland's built environment over the next 10 years include:

• investment in new urban regeneration and infrastructure to support housing growth
• a comprehensive plan for Auckland's waterfront
• implementing the City Centre Masterplan.

Natural environment

Our plans to manage Auckland's natural environment over the next 10 years include:

• resuming the Natural Environment Targeted Rate
• continued support for volunteer and community involvement in environmental programmes
• continuing a regional move to rates-funded rubbish collection service
• $5.9 million for increased animal management resourcing.

Community

Our plans to support our communities over the next 10 years include:

• $84 million additional operating spend and $56 million additional capital spend in the first three years of the plan to provide fairer funding for local boards
• investing in community-led arts and cultural activities, events, community development and safety activities though the Regional Arts and Culture Grants Programme
• $35 million increase over three years for more indoor sports facilities.

Economic and cultural development

Our plans for economic and cultural development over the next 10 years include:

• continue to deliver large cultural events like Pasifika, Diwali and the Lantern Festival
• supporting ongoing wildlife, visual arts and heritage conservation
• secure international and domestic musicals, concerts, sporting events and art exhibitions.
• working with central government and industry for new financial resources to fund ways to attract visitors to Auckland and help grow the economy

Well-managed local government

Our plans to support well-managed local government over the next 10 years include:

• setting up the Auckland Future Fund
• $171 million towards delivering Māori outcomes
• continued storm recovery and response activities, including property buy-outs.

Major investments

This LTP looks at how we can better manage some of our large investments to improve the council’s physical and financial resilience. To do this, our plan includes:

• a new regional wealth fund
• changes to how we manage the Port of Auckland (POAL).

Auckland Future Fund

The Auckland Future Fund is a regional wealth fund that aims to:

• provide additional funding for council services of around $40 million per year from 2025-26
• help fund services and infrastructure without the need for higher rates increases
• diversify our biggest investments across different sectors and different geographic areas.

POAL

POAL is expected to deliver $1.1 billion in profits over the next 10 years.

This LTP aims to transfer Marsden and Captain Cook wharves and the associated land from POAL to direct council ownership within two to five years.

This will:

• open new public waterfront space for the city
• improve ferry services
• provide a boost to our economy.

Read the Long-term Plan 2024-2034 in full

The Long-term Plan 2024-2034 (10-year Budget) documents will be available in early July.