City mulls adding more land for growth

The City of Sisters may need more land to accommodate its rapidly growing population.

City officials met in a workshop on Thursday, August 28, to discuss which 110 acres of land outside the city limits might best be acquired for expansion of the Urban Growth Boundary.

Meanwhile, residents are holding to the city's existing 1,124 acres of roomy terrain with clenched fists.

The Urban Growth Boundary is currently the same as the city limits.

With population growth predicted to quadruple to 4,167 in 2020 from its current 1,080, the city has identified a need for an extra 91 acres zoned for residential uses. (Note: The 91 acres are for houses and the rest of the 110 total acres are for streets.)

A citizens' committee weighed in on the UGB expansion.

"Our committee looked at the density and where the city is headed and the density is changing the city from where we like it," said Curt Kallberg at the city council meeting on Thursday.

Kallberg, a builder and partner in the McKinney Butte development on the west side of Sisters, lives just outside the city limits near the high school.

He sat on a committee of about 12 residents who documented their concerns about population impacts in a report to the city this summer.

"The city is still based on jamming people together," Kallberg said. "I didn't come here, I didn't bring my family here to see the direction this town is going. We're jamming three to four houses into existing communities."

Kallberg told The Nugget the city needs to look at more than 110 acres, of which only 91 are buildable for housing.

"We agree they need more land," Kallberg said. "But they're not even close. They need about 200 acres more. They're aiming for six houses per gross acre.

"We don't want them to use farmland either, but we also don't want them to ruin our existing living situation.

"If we follow state regulations, we'll look like Portland," Kallberg said.

"We don't want Sisters to look like Portland."

After comparing multiple land options in a detailed chart, City Planner Neil Thompson recommended three zones he regards as prime for building single and multi-family dwellings and some commercial sites.

"We want 10 percent of the developed land to be commercial because more residential development means we need more commercial," Thompson said. "We like the idea of mixed-use areas."

The recommended areas are:

• The West: 35 acres near Sisters High School and McKinney Ranch Road.
• South: 40 acres of Pine Meadow Ranch.
• Northeast: 46 acres near the sewer pump station and Barclay Drive.

City staff presented a one-to-three scaled chart which rates about 450 acres of undeveloped land surrounding and touching the city limits.

Ratings are based on a variety of land-use factors including access to water and sewer services, state regulations, traffic impacts, environmental concerns, agricultural and forest preservation and access to schools and commercial areas.

A 36-acre lot in the northeast section rated the highest among the 18 charted lots.

The lot is located across from Conklin's Guest House. The 40 acres of Pine Meadow Ranch rated just below that lot.

City Council gave Thompson a thumbs-up for his work on the rating chart. Thompson said his next step is to send his proposal to the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD).

A public hearing on plans will take place about 45 days after the DLCD receives the chart.