Two of Dunedin's biggest projects have remained in the city council's budget, with the Awatea St stadium surviving another debate and the Dunedin Centre-Town Hall upgrade possibly taking a new tack.
Councillors voted 8-5 to continue with the stadium, although two said their support had a time limit.
The Dunedin Centre budget of $45.4 million stayed, but Cr Kate Wilson moved a series of recommendations to set a path for the project's future.
The decisions at the council's annual plan hearings committee yesterday, which decided on the budget for the next financial year, have to be approved at a full council meeting on May 26.
The longer of the debates concerned the stadium.
Mayor Peter Chin said resolutions had already been voted that "give a safety valve for the way ahead".
"It would be my view the budget line should stay in the annual plan," he said, and moved accordingly.
Greater Dunedin councillors Dave Cull, Kate Wilson and Chris Staynes all voted in opposition, arguing that the city could not afford the project, rating for it would affect people differently, and the timing was wrong economically.
Crs Fliss Butcher and Teresa Stevenson added their opposition.
Cr Michael Guest disagreed, calling their views "pessimistic".
Crs John Bezett, Andrew Noone, Richard Walls and Syd Brown also continued their support for the stadium.
Cr Paul Hudson said he would support the project, for which the council had "made a commitment in good faith", but he had heard enough to cause him extreme concern and if he did not get answers to questions he had, "I'm not sure how long I'll be supporting it".
Cr Bill Acklin said if answers came back from the Carisbrook Stadium Trust that the facility could work, he would keep supporting it.
"If that doesn't come back, I'll be reconsidering as well."
Cr Wilson's recommendations for the Dunedin Centre included developing a design for a "gut and rebuild", and a more detailed design on the so-called "Option 14", which is a reduced version of the extension into Harrop St and Moray Pl.
A new subcommittee would then recommend which option was better.
The "gut and rebuild" option was included in Dr Diane Brand's peer review of the project, made public last week, but she warned that "a $45 million budget would not be sufficient to achieve this outcome".
The debate on the Dunedin Centre was relatively short, after councillors had spent hours discussing issues with the public excluded.
