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Depoe Bay work session explores user fee, RFPs and lease options to close harbor budget gap
Summary
City and Harbor Commission members reviewed harbor finances, discussed a per‑passenger user fee and expanding an RFP to lease fueling or operations. Staff was directed to gather data, consult legal counsel about fee authority and prepare options for council consideration.
Depoe Bay — At a joint work session, city officials and the Harbor Commission discussed ways to reduce the harbor’s operating deficit, including a per‑person harbor user fee on charter tickets, expanding a request for proposals (RFP) to find private operators, and revisiting leases for dock uses that previously generated revenue.
Why it matters: Harbor leaders said the harbor has run deficits in recent years and that current subsidies — discussed in the meeting as a roughly $150,000 transfer from transient room tax and an approximately $100,000 transfer from urban renewal or general fund sources — are helping operations but are not sustainable without additional revenue or structural changes.
Discussion highlights: staff presented historical and current budget trends showing recurring annual deficits in the harbor enterprise fund; one figure…
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