Council favors density ordinance

The debate continues about how many homes should fit on an acre in Sisters. Meanwhile, new construction continues. photo by Jim Cornelius After months of debate, members of the Sisters City Council signaled at a Thursday, April 29, workshop that they will finally pass a controversial ordinance which will shape residential density in Sisters.

The councilors signaled their intention to pass Ordinance 348, which amends the development code to require developers to build four to eight units per gross acre in new residential zones. The councilors will vote on the ordinance at the city council meeting on Thursday, May 13.

The existing development code, which was passed in June 2001, requires developers to build six to seven units per gross acre.

Lon Kellstrom, councilor, said at the last council meeting that six to seven is too restrictive, and should not have been passed in the first place.

Opponents of Ordinance 348, which include planning commissioners, developers and Realtors, agree that six to seven units is too tight a restriction, but insist the council needs to pass an ordinance which allows them to build as few as two to seven units per gross acre.

Sisters currently averages about three units per gross acre, according to a report distributed by Curt Kallberg, an outspoken opponent of the ordinance and member of the citizens committee which worked on the density issue.

The report surveys the 10 subdivisions in Sisters and shows densities ranging from 1.6 lots per gross acre in Rolling Horse to five to six lots per gross acre in The Pines.

At a density of two to seven units per gross acre, developers have the freedom to build larger homes on larger lots and build more subdivisions like Coyote Springs, opponents say.

Four to eight units per gross acre, on the other hand, will allow for more housing types and affordable housing, according to Neil Thompson, former city planner who recommended the ordinance.

After pulling the ordinance from the agenda multiple times, councilors said at the workshop they don't want to wait any longer.

"I believe it's our responsibility as leaders to say, okay, the developers are going to be mad, but we've go to do this," said Mayor David Elliott.

Elliott said he recently talked to Kallberg, who said he will support the council's decision to pass the ordinance, so long as they agree to re-examine the density numbers for possible amendment.

While the councilors will review the four to eight unit figure, some councilors are hesitant to support lower density.

"Every time they (the opponents) talk, it just makes me want to plant my feet more firmly in the ground," said Councilor Judy Trego. "They say, well no one is going to do two to seven units and I think, then why do you want it if you're not going to use it.

"When I come to the end of my life, I want to look back and say I made the best use of this land as possible. A half a million dollar home on half-an-acre lots is not it. You lose your sense of community when you do that."