Protracted deliberations on Dunedin City Council’s 2026-27 annual plan closed with a 9-6 vote to approve changes to the draft budgets.
After about 10 hours of deliberations, held intermittently across three days, the proposed rates rise finished at 8.9% — reflecting a Three Waters increase of 16.7% and a non-water component increase of 4.3%.
On Thursday, deputy mayor Cherry Lucas said councillors would have to do some hard work ahead of the upcoming 2027-37 long-term plan process because it could not continue in the present way.
‘‘Prior councils have patted themselves on the back by having zero rates increase year after year, or very low, and that, unfortunately, has long-term implications, and we are bearing the brunt of some of that now,’’ Cr Lucas said.
‘‘We’re going to have to make hard decisions because we cannot have everything, unfortunately, and there are a lot of nice-to-haves that ... we’re going to have to think twice about.
‘‘The long-term plan is going to be a hard, hard year ahead.’’
Long-term plans are strategic 10-year plans that outline major infrastructure plans, budgets and rates; they are reset every three years.
Annual plans are done in between to allow for adjustments for unexpected cost changes or changing priorities.
City councillors debated removing or deferring several projects from the draft capital expenditure programme for the 2026-27 annual plan but, in a series of close votes, approved none.
The capital expenditure budget, approved 10-5, included a $12 million ‘‘timing adjustment’’ to the non-waters programme, reducing the capital expenditure budget from $210m to about $198m.
Dunedin Mayor Sophie Barker said close votes were a function of democracy.
Ahead of the government’s planned 2%-4% cap for non-water rates, the annual plan’s 4.3% non-water increase was a ‘‘great pathway through’’, she said.
‘‘We do have a hard road ahead of us with the long-term plan. We’re going to have to make some tough decisions on our capital projects, on what services we are delivering for our community, but we also want them to be very proud to live in a city that we call home.’’
The council consulted on a rates increase of 10.5%, and, before deliberations, this sat at 8.8% following staff input.
Many councillors thanked staff for presenting opportunities for savings. However, some said chances to further reduce spending were stymied by others at the council table.
‘‘Spend, spend, spend has been the three-day serial meeting theme,’’ Cr Lee Vandervis said.
Cr Brent Weatherall said the opportunity for councillors to show restraint during deliberations had been largely ‘‘sidelined’’.
‘‘Let us be honest here, the real heavy lifting around restraint, caution, prioritisation and referral was largely delivered before councillors even entered the debating chamber,’’ Cr Weatherall said.
Cr Mickey Treadwell said the budget was ‘‘not a frivolous’’ one.
‘‘While conceivably the dial on the rates could have been moved half a percent, 1%, in that non-three waters budget, really the vast bulk of what’s happening is very basic infrastructure.
‘‘Where we have done extra spend, it has generally been for people who we know to be very disadvantaged — a homeless outreach service and rental relief for [community housing] tenants who, by virtue of being tenants, we know are very financially disadvantaged.’’
Councillors will consider formal adoption of the plan on June 25.
The vote
That the council approves the changes to the draft 2026-27 budgets.
For (9): Mayor Sophie Barker, Crs John Chambers, Christine Garey, Doug Hall, Marie Laufiso, Cherry Lucas, Mandy Mayhem, Mickey Treadwell and Steve Walker.
Against (6): Crs Jo Galer, Russell Lund, Benedict Ong, Andrew Simms, Lee Vandervis and Brent Weatherall.
