Jefferson County snipes at city

Jefferson County has stepped into the growing line-up of those who don't like the way the City of Sisters does business.

On May 24 of this year, the Sisters City Council passed a resolution, in support of Senate Bill 30 (SB 30) which would ban the construction of destination resorts in neighboring Jefferson County in or near the Metolius Basin. SB 30 subsequently died in committee after a veto threat by Governor Ted Kulongoski.

Then on June 26, the City of Sisters sent a letter to the governor expressing concerns about the impact of the proposed destination resorts to Sisters and asked for assistance when working through the planning issues with "...our friends in Jefferson County."

However, up through that date the city had never contacted Jefferson County Commissioners with their concerns nor had they sent anyone to the two Jefferson County hearings that were located in the area.

On July 2, the City of Sisters sent a letter to the Jefferson County Commission that stated: "When these resorts were being mapped, the City of Sisters failed to register its concerns at that time. Undoubtedly, we were unaware of the mapping process or did not comprehend the significance of the proposed developments on our community."

The letter from the City of Sisters to the Jefferson County Commission also requested that Sisters "...be involved in the early stages of planning for any destination resort proposed for the Metolius Basin or Camp Sherman area. Further, we request being notified of planning actions associated with such development."

The letter sparked an unusually strong response from Jefferson County officials. The county's official letter of response to Sisters took a decidedly edgy tone:

"Thank you for your letter asking to be involved in the 'early' stages of planning for any destination resort. We must say that your request sounds very 'hollow' to the Jefferson County Commission after the actions that the City of Sisters took on SB 30 without even giving the Jefferson County Commission a chance to address the council or to explain the situation."

Bill Bellamy, Jefferson County Commissioner, elaborated.

"It is incredible that the council would come forward now," he said. "It is their job to be informed, and they should be reading their own paper. The Nugget certainly had public notices and several articles about what was going on and the significance of the developments. To come forward and say they were unaware indicates that they are a little out of touch."

The possibility of two destination resorts in the vicinity of the Metolius Basin has created outcry across the state from people who fear the untrammeled beauty of the area would be destroyed by such development. One proposal is for a 627-acre "eco-friendly" resort developed by longtime Camp Sherman-area resident Shane Lundgren and Dutch Pacific. The other is a more conventional 10,000-acre resort to be developed by Ponderosa Land & Cattle Co., owned by the Colson family of Portland.

Jefferson County officials feel that Sisters is trying to shut their county out of the same kind of development that helped Sisters become a vibrant community in the 1980s.

"A problem is that many of the people who are involved in the city (Sisters) don't remember the '80s when Central Oregon was going down the tubes," Bellamy said. "Sisters had some far-thinking people then and developed the Western theme. They were pro business, and Sisters grew when everyone else was going down the tubes. If it wasn't for Black Butte Ranch and the businessmen that came to Sisters and took the risks, Sisters wouldn't be anything more than a wide spot in the road today."

The development of Black Butte Ranch did change the face of Sisters.

"We (Sisters) really began to change after Black Butte Ranch opened. Before that there was little business in Sisters, and you would have had a hard time buying a glass of wine," said Dr. Steven Spear, longtime area resident.

It may take some work to heal the breach between governements.

Jefferson County in its closing written statement to Sisters warned: "...we must remind the council that ... cooperation will only work if it goes both ways. Another action by the council like the one taken on SB 30 without giving the Jefferson County Commission a chance to provide input will probably limit the cooperation."