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Harrisburg council adopts tree, contractor-shop and fee ordinances; adjusts assessments for some parcels
Summary
Council approved amendments to the street-tree ordinance, moved contractor shops to conditional use, and approved ordinances and resolutions to continue stormwater drainage and street-maintenance fees with parcel-by-parcel adjustments; staff provided examples and revenue projections.
The Harrisburg City Council on Oct. 11 approved multiple ordinances and resolutions affecting trees, zoning and municipal fee assessments.
Jason (park supervisor) presented additions to the municipal street-tree ordinance (amending chapter 6.05) and the council set the second reading for Nov. 5, 2024. The changes include more specific planting specifications and a recommended street-tree list that city staff plan to publish as a pamphlet.
On zoning, council approved ordinance 2024-10 on second reading to make contractor shops and certain industrial uses conditional rather than permitted, a move staff said gives the city more oversight on where heavier uses are located.
Planning staff explained two fee-related ordinances and companion resolutions: ordinance 2024-11 (stormwater drainage) and ordinance 2024-12 (street maintenance), and resolutions 2024-16 and 2024-17 to authorize the finance officer to assess those fees. Chad Eby said the drainage fee for a typical single-family lot would be about "$147" under the current unit charge example and that changing zoning classifications for some lots (R-2 to R-1) will lower fees for many homeowners. He said the street-maintenance fee example dropped to about $197.73 for a selected lot and that the city projects collections increasing from roughly $1.10 million (2023) to about $1.196 million (2024) for street maintenance, and from $673,000 (2023) to $782,000 (2024) for stormwater drainage as new parcels come onto the assessment rolls.
Council approved both ordinances and accompanying resolutions by roll call. Staff said some parcels (about 1,136) may see fee increases, while approximately 1,507 parcels could see decreases based on the revised land-use weighting factors and parcel square footage updates. Staff offered to provide residents parcel-specific calculations via county GIS or direct spreadsheet assistance.
Next steps: staff will publish guidance, answer resident inquiries about individual parcel assessments, and implement the approved assessments for the upcoming billing cycle.
