Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher said changes made at yesterday's council meeting would result in a proposed 2018-19 rates rise of about 3.5% instead of the 3.79% the council initially indicated last week.
It was the penultimate meeting before the council is scheduled to approve its consultation document for the draft long-term plan on March 27 - and there was no consensus among councillors on a number of spending proposals.
After the meeting, Mr Kircher said debate in council chambers yesterday was understandable.
''We've been doing this since August or something last year, there have been a lot of workshops and a lot of passionate debate about different items to include or exclude and this is sort of the part where it becomes really out there,'' he said.
''We are going out with a bigger increase than we'd like, but it's always bigger than we'd like. But I think it is showing quite a bit of extra activity for the money. It's looking after the basics as well as some of the some extras, if you like.''
At the start of yesterday's meeting Cr Jan Wheeler said she wanted to see a full 1% cut to the rates rise before the plan was opened to public consultation. Cr Jim Hopkins argued successfully for the position of heritage adviser, a proposed new role at the council, to be ''deferred for further consideration'' and instead of a $72,000 commitment to the position in the first year of the 10-year-plan, $40,000 be given to the Waitaki heritage fund.
No decision was reached on the remaining four years of funding for the proposed five-year position in the draft plan.
Cr Hopkins also argued successfully for a library feasibility study ($40,000) to be removed from year three of the plan.
He was unsuccessful in his attempts to remove funding for the new general bylaw's implementation and education ($30,000 over the first three years) as well as $10,000 to be removed from the council's training and travel budget.
Cr Wheeler voiced concerns over the costs for the indoor recreation centre, which, with a $7 million council internal loan, was projected to have a $924,000 impact on rates by 2028 but she found favour with other councillors over her call for ''a non-cost event'' to mark Queen Victoria's 200th birthday.
Cr Peter Garvan said he would rather see the money earmarked spent on a needed ''proper lift'' at the Loan and Merc building.
