Depoe Bay council directs review of fuel-dock costs, schedules workshop with harbor commission

The Depoe Bay City Council on May 20 directed staff to gather detailed, data-driven cost information on the city fuel dock and scheduled a joint workshop with the Harbor Commission to examine fueling and other revenue options for the harbor.

Council members said the review is meant to clarify how fueling operations affect harbor revenue and overhead as the city seeks to close an operating shortfall of about $100,000 for harbor operations. The council agreed to hold a workshop involving the Harbor Commission on June 11 at 5 p.m. and to invite stakeholders to the Harbor Commission meetings in May and June to gather input before the work session.

The directive followed public comment from residents and harbor users who said the fuel dock is essential to the working harbor. “That dock is a lifeline, not a convenience,” resident Shulei Wisniewski told the council, saying harbor-dependent businesses could lose trips or absorb higher costs if fueling access is restricted. Cindy Chico, another speaker, urged the council to consider a mediator or facilitated process to resolve disagreements between the city and harbor users.

Council discussion referenced a written cost analysis that was read into the record attributing calculations to Chris Shaffner showing annual gallons pumped (reported in the analysis as 54,840.7 gallons for fiscal year 23–24) and various labor- and transaction-time assumptions. Council members said they want the city’s finance and harbor staff to verify those figures and present actual operating costs, including labor, equipment maintenance and transaction time, at a future public meeting.

Harbor staff and councilors also noted constraints outside city control: dredging the harbor depends on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, with the earliest possible dredge date referenced as 2026, and certain in-water repairs require state permits. Councilors and staff agreed the commission should hold open meetings for stakeholders to provide input on fueling and broader revenue-generation ideas before the joint workshop.

The council did not adopt a final policy change on fueling during the meeting; members directed staff to prepare the cost review and to coordinate the Harbor Commission’s stakeholder meetings and the June 11 workshop. No formal ordinance or fee change was adopted at the May 20 session.

Looking forward, council members asked staff to present verified operating-cost numbers and to lay out possible revenue options at the scheduled workshop so the council can make an informed decision by following meetings.