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Council directs staff to issue mitigation notice after residents report strong odors from hemp processing facility
Summary
After multiple resident complaints and staff reports, the Prineville council directed staff to send a formal notice to the hemp processing facility requiring mitigation measures and scheduled a review around May 28; city attorney said a formal nuisance hearing would follow if mitigation is insufficient.
Councilors discussed recurring complaints about odor from a local hemp processing facility that date back to the facility's change of use in 2019. Planning director Joshua Smith summarized the history and said staff has previously worked with the company and the facility has installed filtration; the issue resurfaced this year. "At this point, I'm getting enough complaints that it's reaching kind of that council level," Smith said.
Public Works Superintendent Rich Evans described receiving weekly calls and being stopped in the street by residents reporting smells across multiple neighborhoods. City attorney Jared Reed advised council that the city code condition requires mitigating measures if a nuisance is evident and laid out a stepwise approach: issue a notice to mitigate, give the operator time to report back, and if insufficient, schedule a formal nuisance hearing to allow evidentiary presentation. Council moved to direct staff to issue a notice to mitigate and to return the matter for review at the May meeting.
