Ms van Uden would have supported the original recommendation to reduce the number by dropping the Arrowtown councillor.
However, she said if there were to be 10 councillors she would support an Arrowtown representative.
During the final vote on the ward's fate at yesterday's Queenstown Lakes District Council's full council meeting, votes were split 5:5.
Moments before the deciding vote, Ms van Uden told Arrowtown supporters "the time will come ... and I think you need to be realistic that you will, in a lot of ways, be better served by becoming a part of the community".
Included in the two-hour debate was an amendment to increase the Wakatipu number to seven, from six, and keep Wanaka at three representatives.
Cr John Mann said it was "irrelevant" how many were elected as the contentious issue was about Arrowtown representation.
Those against keeping the ward argued councillors served the entire district and it was a "fallacy" to have a purely dedicated Arrowtown, Queenstown or Wanaka member.
Mayor van Uden was adamant about this and rejected Arrowtown Ward representative Lex Perkins' arguments the village needed a specific representative.
"Are you saying since you live in Arrowtown you don't do a good job for Queenstown?"
Cr Cath Gilmour praised Cr Perkins for being "an amazing councillor" but said he would "still be an amazing councillor in the Wakatipu ward".
Speaking after the meeting Cr Perkins said he was "certainly quite elated at the result" and commended the "good work" of the Arrowtown people who had spoken up for their village.
While he acknowledged it was the closest vote it could have been, he was happy Arrowtown had prevailed and would continue to have representation, as it has for 150 years in one way or another.
He said the mayor's warning to Arrowtown that its `time would come" was reference to local government legislation in relation to tightening budgets nationally.
"I think she was hinting at where government are heading in the next 5 to 10 years.
"I hope [national] government does wait some time to see if the Auckland super city will work."
He was not sure what swung the mayor's vote but said, "I imagine she was listening to what the people were saying."
Every six years, the council was required to review representation and this year an independent working party carried out this task, with its finding being the village was 200 people short of having its own ward.
The meeting was attended by equally charged members of the public.
During the submission period 230 submissions were received, of which more than 90% were votes of support for the Arrowtown ward.
At the meeting the council officially adopted its 10-year plan.
