Congressman Walden visits FivePine

Republican Congressman Greg Walden from Oregon's Second District stopped by the FivePine Lodge and Conference Center last Friday for a roundtable discussion about economic development and green business in Sisters.

"I find what you have done here is remarkable. You have succeeded in preserving the unique character of Sisters where so many other communities have lost their identity when experiencing economic development," he said.

Congressman Walden was recently appointed to the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. He is interested in sustainable economic growth.

His roundtable discussion was designed to provide an overview of what is happening in Sisters and to attempt to find out how what Sisters is doing is intertwined with the federal government.

"We have tried to preserve the look of the area and build as green as we can," said FivePine Operations Director Jeanne Fairman. "The building is well insulated, and we are using heat pumps. Our energy needs are about half of what is the norm for a complex of this size."

She also described how the lodge and cottage complex were purposefully designed to be too small to house all guests attending a full convention center event, allowing the overflow to be disbursed around Sisters to extend both the environmental and economic impact throughout the area.

"We are working toward eco-friendly activities in the area," said Jay Hopp, the Educational Director of Wolftree. "We want to be able to provide some good maps that will encourage exploration, and we want to educate the people that come here so that they learn about the environment and it will become a part of their thinking."

A complex of trails that wander through the national forest can be accessed from the FivePine campus. Two kiosks supply educational information and directions, as well as map out hiking routes of various lengths and difficulties.

The City of Sisters also has a key role to play in the development of a green economy. The planning aspect and zoning considerations are in the forefront as the city continues to grow. Balancing the conflicting interests becomes a serious challenge in the growth of a city and often requires thinking outside the box.

"We approved two business park developments last night that are unique," said Eileen Stein, Sisters City Manager. "They are a commercial/residential mix that will allow for business on the first floor and apartments on the upper level. There has been a lot of time spent on working out the concerns of various interests, but we finally came to a solution that seems to address the concerns and will help in the economic development of Sisters."

This type of a mix of residential and commercial is very common throughout much of the developed world but has been fairly rare in the United States. Sisters has other examples of the concept, one of which is XPress Printing which houses two apartments above the print shop.

By building vertically there is a conservation of both land and building materials. Additionally, since the businesses operate during a time when the apartments are usually unoccupied, there is a minimum of disruption for the residents. The concept also places residents in close proximity to the work district, so that often they can walk to work, saving energy and reducing pollution.

Mark Yoakum, a principal with YO! Productions, talked about what continues to be Sisters' economic engine: tourism.

"We are working toward extending the shoulder and off-season tourism. These are areas that can make a big difference to the local economy and help to balance out the season," he said. "Although we have events during other times like the Rodeo in June, most of our activity is in July and August, and we need to find a way to expand this if we are going to build a sustainable economy."

"We have created a visioning process for Sisters where we have tried to look to where we want to be in the future. We want to develop sustainable industry and economy. We are looking at ways that we can encourage economic development that will fit with the vision," said Cheryl Mills, the Executive Director of the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce.

Walden appeared impressed with what he saw and heard.

"I think that having a vision of where you want to go will help to preserve that special character that identifies Sisters," he said.