Waitakere City Mayor Bob Harvey and councillors will face tough questioning today from business owners whose rates bills have soared by up to 650 per cent in a year.
Business owners and their landlords are shocked by the severity of the rises - which come after a revaluationof the city's land last September.
The three-yearly Quotable Value assessment of land value was used to calculate the 20 per cent share of general rates required from businesses.
This resulted in half Waitakere's business properties - about 1200 - receiving rates demands averaging $2115 and due on Wednesday .
Land values increased by 200 per or more for potential business sites in Hobsonville, Massey North and Westgate - all soon to be brought inside the metropolitan urban limit.
High demand for business land also bumped up values in pockets of West Harbour, Te Atatu Peninsula and Glendene.
"Everybody is stunned by the increase," said Trevor McKeown, of FHM Automotive on the Te Atatu peninsula.
His property's land value increased in three years from $73,000 to $1.25 million, and his rates bill rose from $3189 last year to $24,054.
Mr McKeown said the valuations were based on the assumption that town houses could be built there. "But we are not selling out."
Council finance committee chairman Ross Clow said the council had flagged a change from rating on unimproved land value, because it was inappropriate for a mature city.
"It's better to move to a capital value or annual value system which take into account land and buildings," he said.
