News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
City plans to renovate the Creekside Park overnight campground ran up against public concerns about tree removal and changes to accommodate more full-hook-up RV sites.
Several citizens submitted written commentary on plans to cut down trees and criticizing what they perceive as a move that will fundamentally change the nature of the overnight park. Activists opposed to the project indicated Monday that they will seek a public meeting on the subject before the council acts to approve the plan. No council vote has been scheduled yet.
City Manager Andrew Gorayeb presented responses to public comments at a workshop last Thursday. Click here to view the complete public comments and responses.
There are two phases to the proposed project. Phase I includes removing 18 non-hookup sites and replacing them with 26 full-hookup sites, for a total of 76 sites.
Phase II calls for removing 25 non-hookup sites and replacing them with 24 full-hookup sites for a total of 75 sites.
On Thursday, city officials indicated that Phase II is likely a year or more away. Mayor Brad Boyd told The Nugget that staff would evaluate the uses of the park after Phase I is in place to determine what the most common uses are and where and when demand is greatest.
In response to concerns about the cutting of trees, Goryaeb noted that four "significant trees" (eight or more inches in diameter at four feet above ground) will be cut in Phase I and "the city will be planting 10 trees along Locust Street ...and 15 trees along Tyee ... to help offset the four trees that are being (removed) as part of Phase 1."
There will be no tree removal from the "buffer zone" along Highway 20.
Public Works Director Paul Bertagna said that engineers and construction crews will "field fit" around other trees.
"The ultimate goal being, get the RVs in without damaging the RV or the trees and save as many trees as we can," he said. "We are motivated to keep the trees, for sure."
Phase II calls for felling 22 "significant trees" and the city plans to plant "at least 25."
Another key concern is that the park will be built to accommodate RV travelers at the expense of tent and car campers and hikers and cyclists. Specifically there were concerns that unhooked and unplugged campers and families with children would be effectively priced out of the campground.
Gorayeb said that "the plan is for Phase 1 to end up with 51 full hookup/camping sites, 25 non-hookup/camping sites and three hike /bike sites. Phase 2 ends up with 75 full hookup /camping sites and three hike/bike sites." Additionally, he said, "All sites are available to dry camping at appropriate rates that are attractive to families. Camping on grass should be a better experience than the current condition of mostly dirt. The proposed amenities and upgrades should be attractive to families with children."
While rates will increase, tent or car campers will not be paying full-hookup rates.
Asked to attach rates to the different types of camping, Gorayeb told The Nugget, "We currently charge $15 for non-hookups and we're thinking about taking that up to $20. We currently charge $40 for full hook-ups; we're thinking about taking it up to $45."
Opponents of the proposed renovation remain skeptical of the plan.
Ed Protas wrote to the council Monday, chiding the city for, as he sees it, aspiring to emulate the Bend-Sisters Garden RV Park adjacent to the Sisters Rodeo Grounds.
"Such admiration is well deserved; the Bend-Sisters Garden RV park is immensely successful," Protas wrote. "It is a beautiful RV park that is always full in high-season... This does not mean that the Sisters community campground can or should emulate any privately run RV Park. We have a community campground, which is very different from a private RV park, and we have no business attempting to copy that model."
The city's position is that "this upgrade will significantly improve the visitor experience. It will make the campground safer, increase the number of trees in the campground, and it will improve the campground's interaction with its neighborhood (screening and attractiveness). It will also increase the number of visitors to Sisters that have an overnight stay option."
At Thursday's workshop, a resident of an adjacent neighborhood said that he is "living in a parade" of RVs on his street and questioned what benefit the upgrade plan brings to residents.
The city asserts that better signage, removal of an access on Locust Street and better staging circulation will reduce impact on neighbors from wandering RVs.
Mayor Boyd said, "You'll have a better neighbor there. You're going to have better screening and better traffic flows. You won't have RVs going into residential neighborhoods."
The cost of Phase I is $297,000; Phase II will cost $285,000.
A city planning staff decision approving the plan was released on Friday; the council will vote later.
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.
Reader Comments(0)