In what was described by council staff as ''a significant meeting'', councillors came up with close to a final draft of the Long Term Plan, which also includes the budget for the 2015-16 financial year, to go out for public submissionsnext month.
Final decisions will be made on the draft on March 18.
In its first cut on December 10, the council settled on a 2.9% increase, planning to gather almost $30 million in rates next financial year compared with $29.107 million budgeted this financial year.
Yesterday, further adjustments resulted in a proposed rates total of $29.595 million, a 1.7% rise, which Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher described as ''a fairly moderate increase''.
Included in the adjustment was a change in approach to dividends the council gets from its wholly-owned company Whitestone Contracting Ltd.
In the past, the dividend has varied according to what the company felt it could pay.
However, negotiations between the council and company have resulted in an agreement for payment of a minimum $120,000 dividend each year.
Of that, $20,000 has been added to the $30,000 the council already makes each year in grants to community organisations, to meet demand. The remaining $100,000 will offset rates requirements.
Other major reductions included the proposed rate for the Oamaru sewage treatment scheme ($150,000), Tourism Waitaki funding ($67,000), not providing a floating day berth at Oamaru harbour ($100,000) and no increase in funding for Food Act provisions ($50,000).
The council added $25,000 to pay for kerbing and channeling in lower Wansbeck St alongside the former railways goods yard and $100,000 for further repairs to Holmes Wharf.
The LTP proposes a 1.8% increase for 2016-17, 1.7% for 2017-18 and a large 5.2% for 2018-19, when the impact of redevelopment of the Forrester Gallery will really hit the budget.
However, councillors indicated there would need to be a another look at that 5.2% projection closer to 2018-19.
