Presently, motels without a liquor license attract lower WDC rate than accommodation with a liquor license such as a hotel.
WDC wants to rate both categories of accommodation at commercial rates regardless of licensing as it believes both enjoy similar service levels from the territorial authority.
General manager corporate Alan Adcock said WDC's aim was to ensure properties used for similar purposes were rated the same way. WDC sought to identify where the system was unfair and to develop recommendations to improve fairness.
"If the proposal gets the go-ahead after the hearings and deliberations, some will pay more than in the past and some may pay less."
The move comes as the council is trying to attract more tourists to the district. Tourism is worth more than $1.1 billion a year to Northland.
Owners of the Ruakaka Beachfront Motel, which has only 18 units, will be among the hardest hit, with an almost 100 per cent increase proposed for the business.
The motel is paying $15,662 per annum but that will rise to $31,333 if the proposal is passed.
"It's appalling. We have to sell 110 (extra) units per year just to cover the increase in rates. That's a lot of money for a business this size to sustain," manager Mike Sharrock said.
"At the end of the day, this council has to live within its means and stop funding non-core business activities."
Sharrock is disappointed WDC sent the letter just one week before the proposed changes were to be discussed in council. Since he received the letter at 4.15pm on April 6, it was too late for him to attend the meeting and he had limited time to research the proposed changes.
Stu Neal, co-owner of One Tree Point Motel, said WDC would struggle to justify how motels and hotels enjoy similar levels of service from the territorial authority.
He's facing a 76 per cent increase - an additional $7201 a year.
"A hotel in Whangarei with 115 rooms, two conference rooms, a bar and a restaurant will have more impact on council infrastructure than a motel with only 13 rooms."
Danny Leader took out a loan to buy the Avenue Heights Motel, in Whangarei, two months ago and said a substantial increase in rates would be "quite a blow" for him and his wife Nancy.
"If it had been incremental over say five years, you could probably handle it but to get it in one big lump sum you'd end up driving tourists away," he said.
A high annual rates bill would also make it harder for him to sell his business if he wanted to, Leader said.
He doesn't know how much his rates would go up by as he hasn't received a letter from WDC.
A 20 per cent increase to $104,000 is being proposed for Distinction Whangarei Hotel and Conference Centre on Riverside Drive.
"That's quite surprising because the council has been encouraging the accommodation sector in Whangarei," said owner Geoffrey Thomson.
Judging from the short time given to hotel and motel owners to put their submissions in, it appeared WDC had already made up its mind on the rates increase.
Lodge Bordeaux, the only five-star accommodation in Northland, is facing a rates rise of 81 per cent to about $20,000 from $11,000.
Co-owner David Chamberlin described the proposed hike as "horrendous" and unaffordable for most operators.
