Deschutes again leads state in population growth rate
More people are arriving in Central Oregon along with a
better economy, and Deschutes County now leads the state in the percentage
growth of incoming residents.
That
is a snapshot revealed in new population figures for Bend and Deschutes County
and a report on the improving business climate.
In its latest report, Portland State University’s
population research center estimates
that the county’s population increased 4.2% in the 12 months before July 1,
2014 measured by the center.
That translated to 3,875 new residents and a total of
more than 166,000 in the county. State population grew by only 1.1% over the
period according to the research center, or to about 3.4 million.
Deschutes County was well ahead of the second highest
growth county, Hood River County, which grew by 1.9%, but with only a total
population of 23,730.
Bend, as the county’s largest city, joined Salem,
Beaverton, Eugene and Corvallis with growth of more than 1,000 residents in the
July to July period. Portland grew by 9,390 residents.
A bright economic outlook
On
the economic side, an economic report from the University of Oregon sponsored
by the Bend Bulletin, indicates a continuing increase in the Central Oregon
Business Index in the third quarter of 2014 compared to the comparable quarter
of 2013
The Bulletin reported that the index, using a baseline of
100 in 1998, grew 4.3% to 124.3.
Economist Tim Duy who directed the research attributed
the growth in part to housing, but added that the increase did not signify a real
estate “bubble” similar to the one that popped during the recession.
The Bulletin reported that Duy’s research shows tourism
continues to be a mainstay of the regional economy. Supporting that conclusion,
lodging room taxes jumped from $1.7 million in the third quarter of 2013 to
$2.2 million in 2014.
Another
bright spot was employment growth of 5% year-to-year, which
brought total jobs to within
approximately 3,000 of the peak 2007-2009 period.
A green light for Bend water project
A decision by U. S. District Judge Ann Aiken has cleared
the way for the City of Bend to proceed with construction of the much-delayed
Bridge Creek water project that will include replacement of an existing pipeline
along Skyliners Road.
Aiken ruled that the Forest Service, which had issued a
special use permit for construction across federal land, was not required to assess
potential impacts for future withdrawals from Tumalo Creek that exceed 18.2 cfs,
the current limit.
The estimated $24 million pipline is part of a larger
project that will include a new water filtration treatment system. The city has
already received extensions from the federal Environmental Protection Agency
which has determined the city’s current system needs to be upgraded to prevent
potential contamination from cryptosporidium and other bacteria.
Opponents including Central Oregon Land Watch have argued
the environmental review did not adequately consider the effects of withdrawals
on fish and future climate change. Other objections maintained that the city
should rely more on less-costly groundwater withdrawals from additional wells
instead of diverting surface water directly from the Bridge Creek-Tumalo Creek basin.
Initial estimates for the entire project, including the
pipeline, have approached $60 million with legal costs added to that.
