A final decision on how much residential, commercial and rural ratepayers pay for Dunedin's Awatea St stadium may change city councillors' minds on whether the project should proceed, Cr Kate Wilson says.A council working party will consider how much each of those groups will pay for the stadium early in the new financial year, after a council meeting this week voted to have the issue considered.
The issue of rating differentials - the level of rates residential, commercial and farming sectors paid - needed to be considered, because any changes might mean the $66 a year councillors had said would be paid by a ratepayer owning an average-priced house could rise, Cr Wilson said.
Berwick farmer Mike Lord this month told annual plan hearings his farm was valued at $4.5 million.
Using the Dunedin City Council's calculations, his annual contribution would be $548, and he expected his contribution via Otago Regional Council rates to be another $570.
Cr Wilson said if the council changed the rural rates for the stadium, that would affect residential rates.
"If it was $100 or $150 for residential rates, I expect it would change some people's minds about whether it [the stadium] is a viable project."
