The costs, which council chief executive Jim Harland yesterday said stood at $11,060, were ordered after the group, now called Sort the System (STS), fought an unsuccessful challenge against the Dunedin City Council's funding of the Forsyth Barr Stadium.
Mr Harland had given the group until the end of April - yesterday - to start making payments.
Justices Mark O'Regan, Ronald Young and Geoffrey Venning, of the Court of Appeal, heard the case in Wellington in August last year, and ruled the council had not acted contrary to the Local Government Act when it signed a contract with Hawkins Construction.
In September, they ruled the group had to pay the costs.
Mr Harland made it clear at the time the council expected payment.
This week, Mr Harland said he had written to the group, now headed by Dave Witherow, before Christmas last year, offering a time payment option over a year.
Interest would not be charged.
"It took several months for them to get back," Mr Harland said.
At a recent meeting, the group was offered an alternative arrangement, with the payments to be made in instalments by the end of the year.
"Now, in effect, they've got seven months."
Given the debt was to ratepayers, was not for the whole amount the council was required to spend, and considering the group had taken a political stand on a financial issue for ratepayers, Mr Harland said he would expect the group to meet its obligations.
The Dunedin Ratepayers and Householders Association had been in similar situations and "always met their obligations", Mr Harland said.
Asked about the issue, Mr Witherow responded yesterday that STS intended to pay the debt, "as we have always said".
"Repaying the debt is actually not the point at issue - we are agreed upon that; it is the timing we are trying to finalise."
At the meeting with Mr Harland, STS explained that the best opportunity to raise funds would be during the approach to the October elections, when "we will be ideally placed to raise money for the dual purpose of repaying our debt and dumping the present mayor and his spendthrift colleagues".
Mr Witherow said the debt was not to ratepayers, but to the council.
