News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
The planned Black Butte Crossing development on the north side of Sisters will add some 32,000 square feet of new retail space to Sisters' business community, along with an estimated 243 townhouse- or apartment-type residences.
The project, which is expected to go before the city's planning commission for review next month, is represented locally by broker Peter Storton of RE/MAX Town & Country Realty. He is serving as a consultant for Willamette Planning Group LLC, which filed the application for the project with the City of Sisters. The owners are Willamette Builders Group, out of Portland.
The proposed project is sited on 10 acres along Larch Street. It is near the site of the new Sisters Post Office, which is expected to be completed this fall or winter.
"These folks bought that 10 acres three or four years ago," Storton said.
Exact housing types and specific commercial applications remain to be determined, as do prices.
"This is supposed to be for sale properties," Storton said. "Of course, at this stage having any prices is difficult because we don't know when it is going to be completed."
Storton said that commercial activities could include professional services like financial or real estate offices, a deli, a hairdresser - a range of services largely geared toward the residents of the development.
"That would be part of my responsibility - to see what we could accommodate there," Storton said.
Storton said he recognizes the ongoing concern among many downtown merchants that new developments could shift business activity away from Sisters' downtown core.
"I know the retail operations are going to be wondering where we're shifting to," he said "Are we moving out to (the new shopping center around) Ray's? Are we moving north? It would be logical for them to think that way.
However, Storton believes that Sisters will be able to absorb more commercial activity as more people move into the area. He also noted that commercial activity outside a downtown core is common in many small cities.
The project would be built in two or four phases over a period of several years.
"They have been talking about starting spring or summer of next year," Storton said.
The developer appears to have the horsepower to carry the project through, despite a current economic slowdown.
Storton described the developer as "sophisticated" and said "they are very professional to work with."
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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