Boundary changes face criticism

Neighborhood center? Sisters faces tensions between growth and desire to preserve its rural feel. photo by Jim Cornelius

The City of Sisters Planning Department faces mounting opposition to proposed changes to the city's Urban Growth Boundary (UGB).

Proposed "neighborhood centers" in the amendments to Ordinance 324 of the Model Development Code have a mixed-use zoning that would allow for limited commercial development. The zones affect property north of Sisters High School, southwest of Pine Meadow Ranch and on the northeast end of town near the Edge of the Pines subdivision.

Opponents believe that this "limited commercial use" would decentralize the downtown area of Sisters by creating commercial development away from the center of town.

"That is the death knell, historically, for downtowns to allow the spreading out of commercial areas," said Paul Dewey, an attorney and head of the Sisters Forest Planning commmittee.

"These little commercial nodes fit better into a development model for a town that has a population of 10,000 or larger.

"Sisters has a viable downtown and they should do nothing to weaken that. There's no need or justification for what they're planning."

City planner Neil Thompson disagrees with Dewey's premise.

"It's a misnomer to say that these are commercial nodes," he said. "In planning we find that people will walk in radius of up to a quarter-mile. We're at that point now. What we're planning are those next steps where the 'commercial nodes' will have to be in the future."

There is the possibility that the Urban Growth Boundary for Sisters could someday include Tollgate and Crossroads. Thompson said that if Sisters sees growth rates like it has recently -- 14 percent for the next four or five years -- he believes that encompassing these residential centers could be possible.

William Boyer, Chairman of the Friends of Deschutes County, says that expansion of Sisters' Urban Growth Boundary is not consistent with the Goal 14 in land use regulations for the State of Oregon.

Goal 14 states that a local government must encourage development within urban areas before the expansion of an urban growth boundary.

Thompson said, "We've addressed Goal 14. In 1999 we did a revamping of our code to allow for 'infill' and redevelopment inside the urban growth boundary. Now you can put five or six houses where before you could put one or two. Frankly it's caused growing pains inside the city. Our citizens and voters are now reacting to the infill that's taken place."

Boyer is also concerned about potential windfall from "upzoning."

This happens when property owners have the zoning of their land changed from farming or forest land to commercial land. Commercial land is more valuable than farm land and it increases the taxes of those who live nearby.

Dewey also charges that some of the expansion is motivated by landowners who can achieve a greater profit due to the zoning changes.

"There's some of that going on," he said.

"Are there beneficiaries in this? Yes there are. Are they some of the usual suspects? Yes. Are there losers? Yep," responded Thompson. "But, I'm very comfortable in the way we did this."

There has been a suggestion to open each of the three neighborhood centers to development separately, only as they are needed, while the others remain reserves. The concern is that if all three areas are opened at the same time under the mixed-use zoning that they will be gradually developed at the whim of owners for short term purposes (aimless urban sprawl) instead of a longrange planning goal.

The evolution of Sisters' "neighborhood centers" will ultimately be determined by a buyer's market.

Thompson explained that the marketplace works best when there are many willing buyers and many willing sellers.

"If we put these property owners into competition with each other then they'll have to compete on the basis of price," he said. "Of the property that's inside the city, there's probably 60 percent of the land available for development, large parcels, that's in the hands of three people.

"They'll have to go through a planning site design process. All three property owners are going to have to go to the voters and explain what they're going to do with their properties. The voice of the electorate will be heard."