A
proposed apartment complex that has become a symbol of development tensions
between Bend’s east and west sides as well as highlighted what some call a NIMBY
(not in my backyard) backlash could be moving ahead.
After
an appeal in April to the state Land Use Board of Appeals, two prominent apartment
opponents and the Evergreen Housing Development Group of Seattle have agreed in
principle to a scaled down project of 141 units on three floors, instead of 170
with a fourth floor.
The
agreement as revealed at a late August public meeting would include 176 parking
spaces as in an original proposal that had been approved by City of Bend
planning staff in an administrative decision. A “modification of approval”
filed with city planners in October noted the square footage of the building area
would be reduced from 168,102 to 138,653 square feet, with no change in the
footprint.
Old Mill District developer Bill Smith
and some neighbors had argued that the project as originally proposed would be
out of scale for the location on Shevlin Hixon Drive overlooking McKay Park and
the city’s new whitewater and river floating facility below the Colorado Street
Bridge. There were also complaints that it would increase traffic congestion in
the neighborhood.
Evergreen’s
proposal was approved after meeting existing city multi-family zoning requirements
that are routinely decided at the planning staff level. But facing vocal opponents,
the city planning commission then held two hearings before approviing the
project with a change to the building height. Smith then appealled to LUBA,
which stipulated mediation through the state agency’s proceedings.
City
reords show Evergreen started its pre-application process for the project in
March of 2015. The revised proposal is set to go before the city planning
commission before year-end.
Evergreens’s
project is working it’s way through city regulatory channels at the same time a
new six-story apartment bulding is under construction less than one-half mile
away on the former Ray’s supermarket site on the east side of SW Century drive
near the Simpson Boulevard roundabout.
That
project, by Eugene-based Forum Westside LLC, is planned to include 200
apartment units over retail space in a five story building. The property was rezoned
from general commercial to mixed use urban. As the new OSU-Cascades campus
expands new businesses and housing are coming on the market to meet demand and
changing the character of some west side areas.
Together,
the two apartment projects, a new hotel and the college’s recently opened
dormitory will be among the tallest on Bend’s west side. Larger multi-story apartment
complexes have been completed on Bend’s east side, incuding on the southeast corner
of Pilot Butte off Highway 20 and to the north of Worthy Brewing on the east
side of Highway 20.
Some
neighbors of the Worthy area complex have complained that narrow streets with
parking on both sides in a retail and office area nearby have resulted in traffic
and safety issues. as drivers avoid the congestion by diverting through adjacent residential neighborhoods.
