By Victoria Stone-Meadows
Casey Council has passed without comment a motion that will see the budget for its new website increase by $300,000.
The motion was listed on the agenda for the council meeting on Tuesday 1 August, but council agreed to pass the motion with no discussion.
In September 2016 council awarded a $274,560 contact to Previous Next Pty Ltd to build a new council website, staff intranet and Bunjil Place website.
The total budgeted amount for the project was originally set at $470,000 but council has now approved a $300,000 increase to the total budgeted amount.
Casey Council’s Acting Manager Digital and Data Paul Dow said the contract variation was akin to moving resources within the bounds of the project.
“The website redevelopment project will still be delivered on budget and on time, it’s just that the budget distribution for the project is changing,” he said.
“While the website development cost has increased to accommodate necessary enhancements and functionality, council has offset the cost by finding savings in other areas of the project.”
The new websites being developed for council will aim to allow residents to connect and transact with council on a number of devices, while the intranet is supposed to increase staff efficiency.
“Through council’s Customer Focus Strategy and Digital Casey Strategy we’re committed to ensuring our customers are at the centre of everything we do and these new digital products will make it easier for our community to connect and transact with council,” Mr Dow said.
“Our new council website will make it easier for our community to find and understand the information they need and conduct their council transactions online anytime, anywhere and on any device.”
“The new Bunjil Place website will attract users to the facility and have functionality to purchase tickets to programs and events.”
The variation to the contact will be absorbed by council’s forecast operating budget over the upcoming three financial years.
