A public meeting to discuss the state of the Dunedin City Council's finances was hailed a success and is likely to be the first of many.
The meeting last night gave the public a chance to ask finance committee chairman Cr Richard Thomson, deputy chairwoman Cr Hilary Calvert and council staff questions about the council's finances.
Speaking at the closing of the meeting, which was attended by about 40 people, Cr Thomson said it had been a success, and similar meetings would likely be held regularly.
Cr Calvert said Cr Thomson had told her ''about four'' people would turn up, which made the turnout a pleasant surprise.
Among the questions asked at the meeting was what the total debt of the council and all of its contributing entities was, with Cr Thomson giving the answer, $622.843 million.
Another question concerned the level of risk associated with interest rates increasing and whether this could make it more expensive to pay back council debt.
Cr Thomson said of the council's core debt of $224 million, $181 million was being repaid at fixed interest rates.
Overall, the average interest rate being paid on the debt was about 7%, which was significantly above the floating rate.
This meant that when fixed rates came up for renewal, it was likely the council would be able to negotiate lower interest rates, even if interest rates increased as expected.
Cr Thomson noted at the start of the meeting, and at various times throughout, the point of the meeting was not to reach conclusions, but about ensuring people had the right information.
The answers to all questions posed at the meeting will be published on the council's website.
