Marion staff propose wide public works fee increases; council asks for comparables and phased approach

Public works staff presented a proposed update to Marion’s public works fee schedule at the June 3 city council work session, telling council many fees have not been changed since February 2008 and recommending several new and increased charges.

Mike (Public Works) described several engineering and public-works fee changes: consolidating multiple permits into a single right-of-way/temporary encroachment permit at $40 (plus $10 when curb work is involved); raising erosion-control fees (minor from $25 to $100; major from $100 to $250); raising sewer-connection review from $50 to $100; and increasing plan-of-improvements review to $200 for projects an acre or less and $400 for larger parcels. Staff also proposed a $50 fee and hold‑harmless agreement for permanent encroachments (for example, irrigation lines in right-of-way).

"So project plans — one good thing that did come out of COVID was we used to print 11 by 17 plans ... We now give them a link to OneDrive, and they can download and print as much as they want. So we don't need to charge that $25 fee because our plans are electronic," Mike said as he outlined several eliminations and consolidations.

The most substantial changes were proposed for traffic-control equipment. Staff recommended replacing the current refundable A-frame deposit with a class‑3 barricade rental at $250 per day, a $150 delivery fee and a $400 replacement cost. As an intermediate option, staff proposed traffic cones at $25 per cone per day with a minimum of four cones per closure, a $75 optional delivery fee and a $400 replacement cost (the replacement cost is applied to the set of cones for a closure). Staff said the change is intended to reduce city liability by requiring commercially compliant, reflective devices for street closures.

Other proposed adjustments included using FEMA equipment-rate tables plus labor for equipment charges, updating solid-waste special collection rates (increasing the first 15 minutes from $40 to $60 and $40 for each additional 15 minutes), a $25 cart‑cleaning fee when residents return unclean carts, and maintaining a $25 charge for missed/late pickup that provides a return pickup option.

Councilmembers sought comparables and questioned the size of the jump for some items. "Have we benchmarked these against our comparables?" one councilmember asked. Staff said comparable cities often do not offer rentals and that benchmarking is ongoing; staff will supply comparable data and more granular cost recovery analysis before council considers adoption. Staff also said the city is moving toward an annual schedule for fee reviews so updates won’t accumulate for decades.

Councilmembers suggested phasing in large increases for items with dramatic cost differentials, and asked whether different rates could be considered for non‑profit or public‑interest uses. Staff agreed to return with comparable data, a clearer cost-recovery breakdown and suggested sequencing. The proposed fee table is scheduled for council consideration on June 19 with an intended effective date of July 1 if approved.

No vote on the fee schedule was taken at the June 3 work session; staff will return with additional benchmark data and recommended modifications.