The money was spent on public consultation, compiling the Morrison Low and Martin Jenkins reports and final application documents for lodging a proposal for a Wairarapa Unitary Authority to the Local Government Commission.
Chairmanship of the working party has moved from Masterton District councillor Lyn Patterson to retiring deputy mayor Jane Terpstra.
This decision was made to ensure political neutrality while Mrs Patterson campaigns for the Masterton mayoralty.
Mrs Terpstra's brief is to lead the group during the election period.
She said the 10 elected members of the working party had dedicated thousands of hours to the project outside of normal council business.
"Not one of us expected this volume of work when we stood for election in 2010 but this is the most important decision Wairarapa has ever had to make with long-lasting implications and consequences," Mrs Terpstra said.
She said given the size of Wairarapa and the fact all three councils run "a pretty tight ship" in terms of staff numbers, there was not enough in-house resources for such major work.
The costs, Mrs Terpstra said, had been met from existing budgets and the latest figures showed how cautious the group had been in terms of financial responsibility delegated to the three councils.
Mrs Terpstra said this was an historic time for Wairarapa.
"We will continue to work towards ensuring the very best outcome for our community."
Mayoral aspirant Gary Caffell said he could not see why Masterton should pay the greater share for a unitary authority which would have no greater benefit to the district than it would to Carterton or South Wairarapa.
"It also seems a huge cost for something based on a whole lot of assumptions rather than actual figures. It simply does not stack up in affordability or sustainability and will almost certainly mean sharp rate hikes and cuts in services for all ratepayers, particularly those in rural areas," Mr Caffell said.
