Before it was closed for public comment on Wednesday (30 April) the Paarl Ratepayers’ Association (PRA) called for urgent scrutiny of Drakenstein Municipality’s 2025-’26 Draft Budget, particularly its recently released property valuations. It warned that the financial burden on residents was becoming unsustainable.
Speaking at an annual general meeting last week, PRA chairperson David Frost said the sharp increase in municipal property valuations had “caused an uproar in most circles,” with nearly all property owners seeing significant jumps in the estimated value of their homes.
“What is causing such an uproar is that the average increase in property values has ranged up to 60%, in some instances well beyond what many residents anticipated.”
The valuation roll puts most properties “marginally (5-10%) under the current expected selling price,” said Frost. The focus shifted to the municipal rates tariff itself, which determines how much residents pay in rates based on those valuations. Although the municipality had reduced the “cent in the rand” rate, Frost believed the reduction had not gone far enough.
“The question must be asked, are these increases not excessive? Considering the broader basket of rising costs households are facing, from fuel to food, any significant increase needs to be scrutinised. The pressure on household budgets is becoming too onerous for many to bear.”
Frost also questioned whether the municipality had done enough to generate alternative sources of income or cut unnecessary expenditure before turning to ratepayers to fund growing costs.
“Has the municipality truly explored every other avenue to raise revenue and trim the fat from its spending?”
Despite his criticism Frost commended the municipality for its recent record of clean audits and its recognition as the country’s “top secondary city”, but stressed such accolades came with higher expectations.
“As I said to Dr [Johan] Leibbrandt (City Manager), the municipality must then be evaluated by a stricter measure than others,” he noted.
Frost’s remarks came during a broader reflection on the association’s ongoing engagement with the municipality. He highlighted the PRA’s efforts to avoid confrontation, and instead maintain open lines of communication, which is an approach credited for recent improvements, such as changes to controversial solar-installation regulations.
READ: Municipality backs down amid public outcry over solar-installation requirements
The Draft Budget closed for public comment yesterday, with the final version due for adoption before the end of May.
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