BANA News Blast
July 17, 2021
City Public Hearing on Promoting Middle Housing
PLTEXT20210421 hearing Monday, July 26 at 5:30 p.m. The City of Bend has been working on amendments to the Bend Comprehensive Plan and Bend Development Code to implement HB 2001, which is intended to provide more opportunities for duplexes, triplexes, quadplexes, townhomes and cottage clusters in traditionally single-family neighborhoods and to increase the overall housing supply in and around cities. For more information about HB 2001 and the proposed amendments, please visit the City’s webpage at bendoregon.gov/HB-2001.
This would eliminate all Single Family Residential zones and permit multi family housing in those zones. The City of Bend will be holding a “virtual” public hearing before the Planning Commission on Monday, July 26, 2021, at 5:30 pm. Attendance instructions will be on the meeting agenda which will be posted at https://www.bendoregon.gov/government/committees/planning-commission prior to the hearing.
Written comments must include the Project Number, be submitted by July 26, 2021 and sent to:
Pauline Hardie, Senior Planner, Planning Division phardie@bendoregon.gov ph# 541-693-2153
Wildfire Prevention Tips
As wildfire season is in full swing, it's time to think about what you can do to help prevent wildfires in the first place. Did you know a large number of wildfires in Oregon are actually caused by humans? Help be part of the solution by knowing what you can do to prevent wildfires.
Cars and Dry Vegetation. It might be surprising to you, but your car gets hot enough during the summer to start a fire! One of the ways this happens is when you park your car on dry plants during Central Oregon's hot summers. The heat on the underside of your car can actually ignite those dry plants below. Learn more tips on how you can help prevent wildfires The Oregon Land Trust shared this information
Commute Options Vanpool Subsidy Program
There is a new transportation solution available for commuters across Deschutes County. Longtime Central Oregon Transportation Options provider, Commute Options, Cascades East Transit (CET), and Commute with Enterprise have launched a regional vanpooling program. Two vans hit the road in June, one from Bend to Crescent, and the other from Redmond to Black Butte Ranch.
Newly formed vanpools qualify for a $500 subsidy per route, which is paid by Commute Options. Five or more workers who share a similar commute and schedule can create a vanpool. Each rider pays a set fee per month, which covers all costs including gas, insurance and repairs. Some employers opt to pay the remaining fee, creating a free ride for their workers.
The program launches as the City of Bend finds transportation and congestion ranking among top community concerns, the cost of housing in Central Oregon skyrockets, and large employers face challenges filling open jobs. Shared transportation options, like vanpooling, can help people get to and from the worksite, making it an excellent employee retention and recruitment tool.
While many office employees are still working from home, many are heading back to the worksite, and millions of essential workers across the United States continue to commute to work,
Vanpooling is an excellent transportation option for commuters who aren’t able to utilize CET’s public transportation system, notes Derek Hofbauer, CET’s Outreach and Engagement Administrator. “We are excited to collaborate with Commute Options on the regional vanpooling pilot program to reduce single- occupancy vehicle trips in our region and help commuters save time and money.”
In addition, all new Commute Options vanpools will receive a Complete Clean Starter Kit to disinfect vehicles and help keep passengers safe, even while COVID-19 risks subside. Commuters interested in joining the program can visit www.commuteoptions.org/vanpool to learn more.
Businesses and commuters interested in participating in receiving subsidies through the vanpool pilot project can contact Commute Options for more details.
City of Bend Fees Increased
Bend Councilors approved new fees for the coming year as part of the biennial budget adoption. The fee schedule covers utility rates, development fees, System Development Charges (SDCs), airport fees, parking fees, solid waste rates and more.
Utility rates will increase 3% for water, 2.5% for sewer and 7% for storm water. System development charges – fees on development to pay for infrastructure needed are increasing 5% each for transportation, water and sewer SDCs. Development fee increases include: building 3%, planning 6% and private development engineering 3%.
Here is the full list of fee changes. The fee increases are part of the 2021-23 budget which Councilors adopted unanimously.
The biennial budget of $927.7 million is a 4 percent increase over the last biennium. The $927.7 million number represents all operating revenues for the biennium (which are $395 million), as well as debt proceeds, interfund transfers, one-time grant funding, and reserves from the prior fiscal year. The $395 million in projected operating revenues for the biennium is a 5 percent increase for the first year of the biennium and a 6 percent increase for the second year.