Umatilla reviews Hermiston IGA for inspections, agrees to join regional aquatic-wellness task force

Umatilla — At its Sept. 3 meeting the Umatilla City Council reviewed an updated intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with the city of Hermiston to provide reciprocity for plan review and site-built inspections, and agreed to participate in a regional task force exploring an indoor aquatic and wellness center.

Staff explained the city has used an IGA with Hermiston for plan review and inspections since about 2016 and has grown its in-house capacity. The proposed update adjusts the hourly rate paid between the cities from $80 to $90 and keeps the plan-review fee allocation roughly at 75%/25% (staff said they would verify the precise split in the final document). A councilor characterized the change as a reasonable administrative update while noting the city’s increased in-house capability.

Separately, Hermiston has invited two Umatilla representatives (one city manager and one elected official recommended) to join a multi-jurisdictional task force to evaluate a potential regional aquatic and wellness facility. Staff described the task force as five meetings between now and June, culminating in a final report with recommendations to Hermiston’s council. The council discussed available meeting windows (early morning or midday options) and remote participation via Zoom or Teams.

Councilors asked staff to consider who would serve as the second Umatilla representative and to return with a nomination. The city will monitor schedules and confirm participants to the Hermiston-led process.

Next steps include finalizing the language of the IGA for signature and identifying the second representative for the task force.