Money would pay for upgrades and renewals of roads, footpaths and streetscapes in four areas including George St. Photo: ODT files

Dunedin's long-awaited central city upgrade could come at a cost of up to $60 million.

That figure has been included as one of three options for councillors in the draft 10-year plan.

The figure is a big increase on the $37.3million allocated for the central city upgrade so far.

A report in the draft plan said the money would pay for upgrades and renewals of roads, footpaths and streetscapes in four areas, George St, Lower Stuart and Bath Sts, Princes St and Rattray St, and the Exchange.

"As the warehouse precinct has shown, private investment in redevelopment can be encouraged by public investment in streetscape transformation.''

The report noted it was expected to take 18 months to complete design, consultation, and procurement before work could start.

The $60 million option would result in "a high-quality upgrade'' across the central city, though the figure did not include the cost of below-ground work on infrastructure, which shows up in the three waters budget.