HERMISTON — The Hermiston City Council has a busy agenda for its Monday, June 14, meeting as the end of the fiscal year draws near.

The council will hold a public hearing and vote on the 2021-22 budget. The budget is 19.5% larger than the previous year, largely due to revenue coming in from the CARES Act and for planned capital projects, including the new city hall, an airport apron repaving, and a $2.5 million infrastructure project at the South Hermiston Industrial Park.

The agenda includes a significant raise in fees for the city’s building department. According to a memo in the agenda packet by building inspector Chuck Woolsey, the city is using a free building permit program by the state of Oregon and it requires the city’s building permit fees be in compliance with state laws.

“Currently, the City of Hermiston is not current with the established fees required by the State of Oregon,” Woolsey wrote. “Indicated fees will increase anywhere from 17-33% to align the City with the State of Oregon fee schedule and will also be comparable to other cities local fees.”

The new fee schedule also includes increases for plumbing, mechanical, electrical and structural permits, “some of which have not been updated for over 20 years,” according to Woolsey.

The council also will hold a public hearing and vote on updates to the code of ordinances regarding two-family homes. The city must update its code to comply with House Bill 2001, which in part requires cities over 10,000 residents to allow duplexes in all zones where single-family dwellings are allowed. Cities must also hold single-family and two-family dwellings to the same standards.

As a result the city is amending its code to allow duplexes in all residential zones. Duplexes will be allowed on the smaller lot sizes currently allowed for single-family homes, but new single-family homes will be required to provide two parking spaces.

Other items on the June 14 agenda include:

• The council will consider awarding Granite Construction a $154,140 contract to install a new playground on the south side of Riverfront Park and move the parking lot to that side of the park as well, to avoid future flood damage.
• The council will hold a public hearing and vote on an update to its comprehensive plan documents to include a new inventory of buildable residential lands.
• The council will consider an amendment to its airport policy, adding additional cleanliness and safe chemical storage requirements for crop dusters.
• The council will consider an update to the city’s building codes to align them with new code changes adopted by the state.
• The council will consider a renewal of its contract with Kayak Public Transit to operate the HART bus system.

The city council’s night will begin with a 6 p.m. work session on Kayak Public Transit, followed by the regular business meeting at 7 p.m. and a Hermiston Urban Renewal Agency meeting afterward to adopt the urban renewal district budget. The meeting can be viewed in person at the Hermiston Community Center, 415 S Highway 395, or live on the City of Hermiston YouTube channel.