Draft Annual Plan 2026/27


Help us plan for the year ahead by providing feedback on our Draft Annual Plan 2026/27. This plan is a statutory one‑year plan and budget that we must prepare in the two years between Long‑term Plans. This plan outlines next year’s proposed rates, what we plan to deliver to our community, and how we intend to pay for it.

The key purpose of the Annual Plan is to identify any differences between what was proposed in the Long-Term Plan 2025-2034 (LTP) and what is now planned for 2026/27.

A significant departure from the LTP 2025-2034 is that the integration of Westport’s stormwater system with the floodwalls has to be co-funded by Council to go ahead. A key assumption in the LTP was that the work would be funded solely externally through the Regional Infrastructure Fund.

Council now has two options: either co-fund 40% ($3.49 m) of the costs to upgrade Westport’s stormwater network, in line with the construction of the floodwalls, or not co-fund and not upgrade the stormwater network prior to the floodwalls being constructed.

To assist Council in making this decision, the community is invited to give their feedback on these two options. We also encourage you to comment on any other part of the Draft Annual Plan 2026/27.

Our Consultation Document includes information on Westport’s stormwater integration, the two options. It also outlines key infrastructure initiatives, our forecasted expenses, income, and the proposed rate increase for the next financial year (1 July 2026 – 30 June 2027).

For a detailed breakdown of next year’s budgets, financial information, and what we plan to deliver to our community, please refer to our Draft Annual Plan 2026/27.

Submissions are one of the most powerful ways communities in New Zealand can shape local government decision-making.

Your voice matters. Make it count.


Help us plan for the year ahead by providing feedback on our Draft Annual Plan 2026/27. This plan is a statutory one‑year plan and budget that we must prepare in the two years between Long‑term Plans. This plan outlines next year’s proposed rates, what we plan to deliver to our community, and how we intend to pay for it.

The key purpose of the Annual Plan is to identify any differences between what was proposed in the Long-Term Plan 2025-2034 (LTP) and what is now planned for 2026/27.

A significant departure from the LTP 2025-2034 is that the integration of Westport’s stormwater system with the floodwalls has to be co-funded by Council to go ahead. A key assumption in the LTP was that the work would be funded solely externally through the Regional Infrastructure Fund.

Council now has two options: either co-fund 40% ($3.49 m) of the costs to upgrade Westport’s stormwater network, in line with the construction of the floodwalls, or not co-fund and not upgrade the stormwater network prior to the floodwalls being constructed.

To assist Council in making this decision, the community is invited to give their feedback on these two options. We also encourage you to comment on any other part of the Draft Annual Plan 2026/27.

Our Consultation Document includes information on Westport’s stormwater integration, the two options. It also outlines key infrastructure initiatives, our forecasted expenses, income, and the proposed rate increase for the next financial year (1 July 2026 – 30 June 2027).

For a detailed breakdown of next year’s budgets, financial information, and what we plan to deliver to our community, please refer to our Draft Annual Plan 2026/27.

Submissions are one of the most powerful ways communities in New Zealand can shape local government decision-making.

Your voice matters. Make it count.

Q&A

If you have a question relating to our Draft Annual Plan 2026/27, you can ask it here until 19 April 2026. 

We will collate these, subject to our guidelines below, and answer them on this page. 

If you still have a question after the 19 April 2026, feel free to send us an email to annualplan@bdc.govt.nz or through this tool and we will answer it directly.

Q&A guidelines 

We will at our discretion, remove any questions/comments we deem inappropriate or disrespectful and reserve the right to determine what constitutes inappropriate content. This may include but is not limited to:  

  • Offensive, abusive, or threatening content. 
  • Defamatory, discriminatory, or bullying remarks. 
  • Personal attacks on staff, elected members, or other users. 
  • Repeated off-topic or inflammatory questions 
  • Misinformation, disinformation or spam 
  • Questions that display micro-aggression. A micro-aggression is a statement regarded as an instance of indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination against members of any marginalised group, such as ethnic or gender minorities.  
  • Questions that repeatedly ignore professional responses and continue problematic framing.  
  • Questions that require disclosure of confidential or commercially sensitive information Including contact details and personal or health information. 


 

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Page last updated: 01 Apr 2026, 12:37 PM