While much of the Long Term Plan for 2021-2031 is on track, budgets, possible savings and a draft capital programme are yet to be finalised after initially being expected to be presented to councillors in June.
City councillors have now demanded this information is made available by October 5 so they have plenty of time to make any final decisions on the plan.
Councillor and finance and performance committee deputy chairman Sam MacDonald said this was "make or break" for the Long Term Plan, which will direct the council's level of service, finances and operations for the next decade and outline what it wants to achieve at a community level.
"They [council staff] need to do the work so we can make considered decisions on savings," MacDonald said.
"If we did not put a line in the sand, we would be in a position where we would have to make rushed decisions."
"We are being very open and transparent on the journey for devising our Long Term Plan.
"We are trying something different, in doing that we were never going to get it completely right and we knew we were going to hit some stumbling blocks.
"I am not uncomfortable with that because we are aware of them but it doesn't mean I'm ecstatically happy," she said.
Said Deputy Mayor and chairman of the finance and performance committee Andrew Turner: "On the expectation, we get those budgets by the 5th of October, I am confident we can complete the Long Term Plan work in sufficient time."
Turner said the lockdown and council staff having to submit a second draft Annual Plan after the pandemic left a $99 million hole in the organisation's finances, had played a big role in the delays.
