City of Bend Oregon - Transportation Fee
At the February 7th city council meeting in Bend Oregon, city staff outlined a proposed transportation fee to be implemented in 3 phases. Each phase would be a year apart, increasing fees until they reach the target goal in year 3.
The first reading of the proposed transportation fee is set for March 20th, the 2nd reading is scheduled for April 3rd, and set to begin as of July 1st if council approves.
The Proposal
The stated purpose is: "to fund transportation programs and the maintenance, operation, repair, preservation, reconstruction, administration, safety enhancements, and capital alteration of the City’s transportation system for all users, including vehicle lanes for all street classifications, pedestrian, bicycle, and other modes of travel”.
The allowed uses under the new fee would be:
Any operations, administration, and maintenance work on the City transportation system performed or contracted for by the City, including partnerships with other entities that enhance the City transportation system.
Operations and maintenance, including pavement restoration, street preservation, signs, striping, sidewalk and other concrete work, bicycle and multi-modal system enhancements, street sweeping and cleaning, winter operations such as snow removal, and implementation of programs identified in the 2020 Transportation System Plan, and administration.
The targeted revenue for the plan is 5 million in phase 1, 10 million in phase 2, and 15 million in phase 3.
The rate structure would be reviewed every 5 years or as directed by council.
The Non-Residential rates listed in the proposal for the first year are as follows and per thousand Sq Ft:
0-50k sq ft = $6.25
50k-100k sq ft = $4.50
100K + sq ft = $3.00
Based on the revenue goals as outlined by the city, these rates would double for year 2 and be triple in year 3.
Here are some examples of monthly costs in year 1 given by the city:
Based on the example given by the city, here is how much the property owner will be charged per month and year in Year 1, Year 2, and Year 3
Next Steps
What you can do about it
Written comments can be submitted to this email address: transportationfeeemails@bendoregon.gov
I personally recommend cc'ing each city council member along with the initial email.
I also recommend attending each of the listening sessions and participating in the discussion as much as possible.
Giving testimony at the Public Hearing and at the council meeting when the second reading is scheduled is also very important. Testimony at hearings and city council meetings are part of the official records. It is important that your voice and the impact these fees will have on your business are clearly known and on the official record.
More information
For more information, the city has created a web page dedicated to the proposed transportation fee.
