Looking back at 2017 to connect with 2018

            At the inception of a new year there is a media tradition to select and distill in the rearview mirror of the past 12 months.

            But many trends and events of the past year remain points of focus for the New Year. With that in mind, here is a summary, albeit not inclusive, of some things to keep an eye on in 2018:

           

            The Bend Urban Growth Plan: The City of Bend faces the challenge of implementing a state-mandated growth plan that after several attempts this decade finally passed muster with the Oregon Land Conservation and Development Commission. The final plan cuts back to 2,300 acres the amount of land the LCDC would allow the city to add within the urban growth boundary, and points the way to higher density, infill and mixed use development within existing city lines.

            It’s in the water: With the central Cascades snowpack at near-record lows for January, irrigators, fishermen and others who rely on a stable stream runoff are notably anxious. The key will be whether the early winter lack of precipitation can be made up later in January and throughout late Winter and Spring. As of January 9, the Natural Resources and Conservation Service reported the snow water equivalent of the Deschutes-Crooked River basin was barely 40% of the median.

            Although Upper Deschutes Basin reservoir levels are reasonably healthy, there are questions as to rate of fill during Spring runoff to maintain releases for irrigation while balancing new requirements to address water for the endangered spotted frog.

            The Mirror Pond dilemma: For visitors and locals alike, few locations in historic Bend are as appreciated as Mirror Pond, a slack stretch of the Deschutes River, and neighboring Drake Park. But the scenic waterway has for decades faced the problem of silt buildup resulting from a Pacific Gas & Electric dam on its northern edge.

            Through several years of talks proposals included dredging, as previously done, letting the river return to a natural state by removing the dam or something in between. Bend Parks & Recreation is proposing work along the shore to create a more natural setting. PGE will not commit to a decision on dam removal, and who would pay is uncertain. And prominent Bend businessmen have purchased the land underlying the river with a preference to maintain the placid pond.

            OSU-Cascades Campus expansion: After completing the first construction phases of its new 4-Year campus, OSU-Cascades is working to secure more funding to proceed with additional phases and accommodate more students. With the first housing and food service facilities joining initial academic facilities in 2017, the university had asked for $69.5 million only to have that pared to $9.5 million in early 2017.

Aerial view of existing campus (lr) & expansion plans

            Now Gov. Kate Brown appears ready to support $39 million for funding in the state supplemental budget. In one report, House Speaker Tina Kotek, a Portland Democrat, was quoted as saying there was little support in the legislature for OSU-Cascades “out there.”

            Even so, the university has moved ahead with plans to acquire property adjacent to the existing 10-acre campus that would, as outlined in its master plan, create a nearly 130-acre campus. Included in the expansion land are a 72-acre landfill, which the university purchased for $1 from Deschutes County in October of 2017, and a 46-acre former pumice mine it acquiredfor $7.875 million in early 2016.

            Potential cleanup costs for the landfill could reach $42 million according to estimates by experts.

            The Vision Thing: Apart from the “vision” Bend’s Urban Growth Plan mandates it must follow for the next several decades, a coalition of public and private representatives have been working collectively with  nonprofit Bend 2030 to address such “livability” issues as transportation, affordable housing and city government structure.

            The organization’s function was in the spotlight in late 2017 when the executive director resigned, saying she didn’t support a new strategy to expand from primarily public engagement on issues to political activity, a decision made by the board in early December of 2017.

            Meanwhile Bend 2030 has asked the Bend Metropolitan Planning organization comprised of city, county and state transportation officials to approve a $20,000 grant request to pursue what a Bend Bulletin editorial called “augmented reality,” among other items. The Bulletin objected that the grant would amount to a “tax handout” and noted Bend 2030’s support of a failed 2016 tax measure as evidence of political activity by the nonprofit.

            Where to Juniper Ridge?: For the better part of the past 10 years the City of Bend has been struggling to get traction for development of its 1,500 acre Juniper Ridge project—once envisioned as potentially attracting business, industrial and research owners-tenants, and maybe home of the OSU-Cascades 4-year campus.

            OSU officials called the site, acquired for $1 from Deschutes County, too far on the city’s northern perimeter to attract students who would more likely favor Bend’s close-in amenities. Thus far only Les Schwab’s new corporate headquarters and a few other businesses have settled at Juniper Ridge. A major obstacle obstructing progress is how additional traffic will be managed at the already bustling Cooley Road and Highway 97 intersection, with some estimates of $40 million to address the problem.

            Still climbing the in-migration curve: In mid-2017 a Portland State University Population Research Center report said Deschutes County in-migration was more than double other state counties, attracting nearly 10% of all new arrivals or a total of nearly 6,300.

            In the 12-months prior to July 1, 2017 the report estimated the county grew by 3.6% to 182,930;  Bend  by 3.9% to nearly 87,000; and Redmond by 2.4% to 28,265. By percentage increases Sisters led the way in Central Oregon with an estimated 150 new residents, or 6.3%, boosting the population to 2,540.

            The continued growth of the region has further accentuated the focus on housing prices, rental supply, transportation and similar factors related to growth.

            Getting to and from by air: Another marker of  growth is the steadily upward passenger traffic at Redmond Municipal Airport, the regional air traffic center.  

            In November United Airlines announced it would begin daily direct flights to Los Angeles, joining American Airlines with existing service. Just before the year-end holidays Redmond airport officials announced it would start to update the facility’s master plan to accommodate regional growth. There are also daily direct flights to Seattle, Portland, the Bay Area, Salt Lake City and Denver.

            Already, the airport is the state’s third busiest with approximately 140,000 takeoff and landings each year. In 2016 the airport closed for 21 days to resurface its main runway, financed with $18 million in state transportation funds. In mid-2017 the airport announced plans to resurface its secondary runway with $11 million from a FAA grant that would be matched by $750,000 in local funds.