Developers weigh in on code changes

Sisters citizens have been up in arms recently over changes to their neighborhoods. They want the Sisters Development Code changed, density reduced and multi-unit developments kept out of existing neighborhoods.

Developers Jim Bell and Bruce Forbes think the code is just fine the way it is; in fact, they think the code has already improved Sisters neighborhoods.

The developers weighed in on the code debate at the Sisters City Council meeting on Thursday, February 27.

Jim Bell, who has built several duplexes along Cascade Avenue, believes the code promotes affordable housing.

"The majority of homes that I've build over there start at $149,900," he said.

Bell said an increase in lot sizes and restrictions on multi-unit development would force his projects into the $200,000 range.

Bell owns 14 lots along Timber Creek Drive east of Sisters Elementary School.

Bruce Forbes doesn't think dissatisfaction with the code runs as wide and deep as council members might think.

"The ones who are satisfied with the code don't call the city and say 'You've done a great job, please don't change the code,'" Forbes said. "You just don't hear from those people."

Forbes believes changes to neighborhoods such as Edge of the Pines, where controversy over density erupted, are for the better.

"The people who are making the changes are making the neighborhood look a lot better," he said.

Forbes also argued that the city is rushing to fix a code that it took many months of study to create.

"I really think that an intensive study needs to be done to see what the city is giving up," he said.

Forbes believes the City of Sisters stands to lose many potential new lots and significant revenue from lost service fees and taxes.

City Planner Neil Thompson has proposed changes to the Sisters Development Code to address concerns about changing the character of neighborhoods.

These include restricting multiplexes to their own zone and increasing some minimum lot sizes.

A public hearing on the proposed changes will be held at the city council meeting on Thursday, March 27.

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Jim Cornelius, Editor in Chief

Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.

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