A fund set up to kick-start the development of major infrastructure projects in the Bay of Plenty is likely to be oversubscribed when applications open next month.
Bay of Plenty Regional Council's Regional Infrastructure Fund opens on 7 November for formal applications.
The council has set aside $38million in its Ten Year Plan 2012-2022, available over nine years, for projects that promote sustainable regional economic growth, or promote environmental protection and enhancement that supports sustainable regional economic development.
The Regional Council's general manager strategy Fiona McTavish says demand is likely to outweigh the amount of funding that will be applied for according to results from the recent expressions of interest process to assess interest in the fund.
'Council received 47 expressions of interest in the fund, requesting approximately $250 million across the nine years 2013/14 to 2012/22,” says Fiona.
'These came from a wide range of public, private, Maori and community entities throughout the region.”
'What the expressions of interest process has shown us is that this fund will fill a need within the Bay of Plenty to assist with infrastructure development.
'However the process has also highlighted that due to the high demand, applications will need to provide a strong business case to be considered for the hotly contested funding that is available.”
Organisations considering applying to the fund are invited to attend a public briefing on Thursday, 8 November at The Orchard, Te Puke at 2pm. To register for the briefing, email rif@boprc.govt.nz
People can also read more information about the fund, including the full Regional Infrastructure Funding Policy and Procedures document on the Regional Council's website www.boprc.govt.nz/rif
Full information about the formal application process will be posted on 7 November, and the briefing notes will be available on the webpage after 8 November.
3 comments
Party, party, party.
Posted on 25-10-2012 10:08 | By SpeakUp
Nothing like a free banquet for the chums of our ‘leaders', is there? Licking their chops for the free money, extorted from ratepayers for the benefit of ‘entrepreneurs'. This is socialism for the chum aristocracy, having a party on the people's back. Promoted and sold as ‘trickle down' investment to further our community's prospect, while council(s) strangulates personal initiative and private enterprise with their everlasting noose of parochial views, regulations and compliance costs. We wouldn't care if the Bay of Plenty Regional Council's Regional Infrastructure Fund would be based on positive revenue. But it is based on further borrowing. This is another disgraceful misappropriation of public funds. It is generational THEFT. We hold that these councillors do not have a mandate to steer our community into crippling debt, especially if public funds are distributed amongst the usual suspects, the mates of council elite. -Citizen Monitoring Council-
Free money courtesy of the ratepayer?
Posted on 25-10-2012 10:13 | By Phailed
But let's hope the money goes to infrastructure that will allow the growth of real industry and business. But I fear some study into say the effects of climate change on basketweaving and other traditional commerce???
GOOD AS
Posted on 25-10-2012 12:07 | By Secret Squirrel
The reasons for funding are ghood, that clearly does not include a Museum, as that is an economic drain, not a "benefit" to the region.
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