About 200 submissions poured in just before deadline on the Waitaki District Council's 2012-22 draft long-term plan, meaning all three meeting days will be needed to consider what ratepayers have had to say.
The council had received about 500 submissions on the draft plan when its office closed at 5pm on Friday, considerably more than the 187 on last year's draft annual plan and more than double those on the 2009-19 long-term plan.
Policy manager Fraser Liggett was "very happy" yesterday with the result, although the last-minute submissions on Friday would put pressure on preparing for public hearings later this week.
About 100 of those making submissions wanted to appear before the council to reiterate their views, which meant using all of Thursday and probably part of Friday.
The council had also set aside Monday as an extra day if needed. Along with part of Friday, it would be used to consider written submissions.
Mr Liggett said the last-minute submissions on Friday appeared to cover a range of issues.
"We were trying to encourage as many submissions as possible and a lot of people worked right up until the deadline," he said.
Earlier submissions indicated the main issues were rates and levels of rates, parks and recreation, commercial and development issues and arts-heritage-community.
This may change as staff analyse the submissions that came in on Friday.
The council's draft long-term plan sets out its aims, projects and projected rates over the next 10 years.
The council proposes an average 7.4% increase in its total rates take, to $27.4 million, and a total expenditure of about $42 million next year.
The impact of that increase would vary across individual ratepayers, particularly those in communities facing upgrading of water supplies to meet government drinking-water standards.
