The Waimate District Council has adopted its long-term plan.
It has also adopted a new rating system.
Rates rises for most people were 1% less than expected, but Waimate Mayor John Coles said that rural ratepayers faced large increases.
The council had decided not to build a $2.5 million sports stadium, and that would result in a reduced average rates increase of 6.1% in 2013-14 and 4.9% in 2014-15.
"This is a pleasing result as we have reduced the increase by 1% following consultation of the long-term plan," Mr Coles said.
The council had introduced a separately used or inhabited parts policy (SUIP) and extended its urban boundaries.
Urban residents would experience "the same, if not a drop in rates", but property owners who remained rural would experience large increases, Mr Coles said.
"The ones that are going to be worst hit are those in the rural and the farming sector, because we have gone on to SUIP, which a is rating per house.
"Those farm properties that have got multiple houses on are paying around $405 per house towards civic amenities, which hasn't happened in the past, so that's the big mover," Mr Coles said.
"We fully realise that what has happened will not be well-received by those that are going to see that increase, but it is intended that over the next 12 months that we will look hard at that area and try to readjust."
About 3% of properties in the existing rural zone had been moved into the urban catchment area, and those properties, in some cases, could possibly experience a doubling of their rates, he said.
Mr Coles said the increases for re-zoned properties would be "eased in" over the next three years.
