Up to 150 refugees will be resettled in Dunedin per year, Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull says.
Mayor Cull made the comments after he and other councillors met Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse following Thursday's announcement Dunedin had been chosen as a resettlement location.
The announcement prompted a massive response on social media, with some saying the city should be proud and others worried about the danger refugees could pose.
Mr Cull said it was his understanding multiple cohorts of refugees would come to the city, adding up to an annual figure of up to 150.
Dunedin was added to existing resettlement locations after the Government agreed to take in 750 Syrian refugees over two and a-half years, but Mr Cull said those coming to the city would be from a range of nationalities.
Commenting on opposition to the move on social media, he said some was based on genuine concerns, but there would ''always be a minority of bigots''.
''I can understand the genuine concerns expressed, but I don't have too much time for people who just write someone off because they dress differently or have different coloured skin.''
When it came to people concerned about there not being enough jobs for refugees, Mr Cull said there was a lower unemployment rate in Dunedin than the national average.
Otago Chamber of Commerce chief executive Dougal McGowan said it supported Dunedin hosting refugees, in part because employers were telling the organisation there was a skills shortage - particularly when it came to attracting highly-skilled workers.
Many of the refugees who came to New Zealand were highly educated and could possibly fill some of those positions, Mr McGowan said.
''We also look at it from a regional perspective ... and what we do know is that areas like South Otago [and] Central Otago, they have a real skills shortage.''
Immigration New Zealand refugee division national manager Andrew Lockhart said the first group of refugees coming to Dunedin in May next year would number 40 to 45.
New Zealand Red Cross was contracted to provide them with settlement support in the community for the first year they were here, Mr Lockhart said.
This included an orientation programme and connecting refugees to services such as doctor's appointments, English language training and employment opportunities.
A spokeswoman for Immigration New Zealand confirmed 100 to 150 refugees would arrive in Dunedin in the first year.
The decision to host refugees in Dunedin attracted a lot of comments on the Otago Daily Times Facebook page, including from a concerned Hayden Arbuckle, who said ''Paris welcomed them with open arms to [sic].''
Others were embarrassed about the level of opposition to the decision, including Matthew Lovett, who said: ''Some of you should hang your heads in shame, you're an embarrassment to the human race.
''Not that you'll know but there's a big wide world away from Dunedin and there's some pretty awful stuff happening and we as a city can do our bit.''
