Albany council approves fees, FireMed increase and capital actions; MUPTI hearing moves forward

Albany City Council on Oct. 22, 2025 approved several operational and capital items during its regular meeting and held a public hearing on a proposed multiunit property tax exemption (MUPTI) program.

Fee schedule and FireMed: The council adopted updates to the fire and life safety division fee schedule as contained in the meeting packet. The council also approved raising the FireMed membership fee from $70 to $85; staff said the program was running a deficit and the increase is intended to make the program self‑sustaining. Staff reported about 2,400 current FireMed enrollees; the last fee update cited in the staff report occurred in 2019 for some charges and 2023 for others.

Gary Street sidewalk contingency: The council approved increasing the contingency for the ST‑22‑06 Gary Street sidewalk (Safe Routes to School) project from 10% to 25% by motion. Staff explained that change orders and additional right‑of‑way negotiations with adjacent property owners are likely to make the originally authorized contingency insufficient; successful negotiations reduced…