With the population of Deschutes County growing, a set of open houses is planned to teach the community about future plans that are being made to deal with that growth, particularly in rural areas.
The Deschutes County 2040 project is a comprehensive plan to address the growing population and directing funding for projects in the county over the next 20 years.
The comprehensive plan on the 2040 project website targets six areas:
Livability
- Reinforcing and strengthening the livability of the rural county in coordination with its four cities in the face of rapid growth.
Rural Development
- Balancing economic growth and housing opportunities while limiting impacts to farm land, forest lands, and the rural character of areas outside of city limits.
Natural Hazards
- Addressing increasingly volatile weather events and their impacts, in particular wildfire and flooding events.
Water
- Addressing water supply declines and issues for both residential and agricultural uses.
Growth Management
- Ensuring coordination between planning for growth and needed infrastructure.
Tourism
- Balancing economic benefits of tourism with access to and quality of recreation experiences and resources for County residents.
RELATED: Homeless crisis top-of-mind at Deschutes Co. Commissioner candidate forum
RELATED: Deschutes County discusses rural ADUs to fight housing crisis
The goal is to get input early from the public and officials are specifically looking for feedback from residents in the rural parts of the county.
“So we’re hoping to get as much community input as we can right now on the key issues, goals and challenges facing the county today and in the future. And then we’ll use that information throughout this project to draft, you know, solutions to those issues,” said Descutes County Senior Planner Nicole Mardell.
The open houses will be held on these dates. You’re asked to register online.
October 19, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. — Bend
- Deschutes County Service Center – Barnes and Sawyer Room
- 1300 Northwest Wall Street
- Register
October 20, 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. — Sisters
- Sisters High School – Lecture Room
- 1700 McKinney Butte Road
- Register
October 24, 4:00 – 6:30 p.m. — Sunriver
- SHARC – Benham Hall
- 57250 Overlook Road
- Register
October 25, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. — Redmond
- Redmond City Hall
- 411 Southwest 9th Street
- Register
This is also an online survey that you can find at the Deschutes County 2040 website. You can also sign up there for a mailing list to receive updates.
