Hermiston gains a new urban renewal area
By Terry Murry on Wednesday, October 26th, 2022 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
HERMISTON – The Southwest Hermiston Urban Renewal Area is now a reality. The Hermiston City Council approved establishing the area to allow it to receive urban renewal funds to bring water to the 350 acres known as Prairie Meadows.
Assistant City Manager Mark Morgan said that city officials have been talking to the group of property owners about developing the acreage for housing since 2012. Last year, the city brought MonteVista Homes of Bend to those talks.
“MonteVista has been constructing anywhere from 40 to 70 single-family homes per year in Hermiston over the last three or four years,” he said. “Before that it was about 30 homes a year.”
Morgan said a project like Prairie Meadows will mean MonteVista doesn’t have to continuously search for smaller parcels of land for its home building projects. At full build out, the project is expected to include 1,300 housing units, public services, and commercial nodes. It will also hold a 38-acre regional park surrounding the basalt butte and a trail network connecting with smaller neighborhood parks are planned.
The urban renewal funding is for projects that include a 6,000 foot water line, a 5,300 foot sewer line, a 2 million gallon water reservoir, and upgrades to the Joseph booster station.
