Hayden Homes withdraws application

Last week, Hayden Homes notified Patrick Davenport, community development director, that they were withdrawing their current application to remove the eastern 18 acres from the original master plan for the 43-acre Village at Cold Springs subdivision off McKinney Butte Road.

During the Sisters Planning Commission's public hearing on June 16 regarding the requested modification to separate the parcels, Hayden's attorney and several Hayden employees reviewed their proposed development of the separated 18 acres, which increased the number of single family homes and decreased the number of apartments. The division would also leave the already-finished portion of the subdivision with a density ratio well below that required in the original approved master plan.

During the hearing, Sisters resident Cort Horner expressed concerns about allowing lower-density construction in one of the few multi-family zones left. Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Sharlene Weed said that the number of apartments and townhomes planned was insufficient to help meet the current need for those types of residences in Sisters.

Hayden offered to build 24 apartments in the first phase of the modified plan, but the total of 48 proposed units was a considerable reduction from the original plan. Unable to reach an agreement, the planning commission continued the hearing to June 29.

In the meantime, Hayden reported they have been working on a revised plan that addresses the concerns raised at the Commission hearing.

"In order to satisfy the items discussed (at the June 16 hearing), we believe that the application should be a modification to the original master plan (with an update to current code and public works standards) rather than removing the eastern property and submitting a new master plan," explained April Pust, PE, land development manager for Hayden.

When informed that Hayden plans to submit an application for modification of the 2005 master plan, Horner was hopeful.

"I'm very glad Hayden is coming back to the table again. I hope a compromise is reached that all parties can be happy with," he said. Hopefully they will "consider the immediate needs in the community, and weigh them against the other present options," he added.

Weed stressed the importance of sufficient rental housing in Hayden's new application.

"I see where compromise could benefit both Hayden and the City. We desperately need rental housing, so a new agreement needs to include a minimum of 100 apartment units with at least 1/3 of them built in the first phase. Anything less would be giving away the farm," she said.

In Pust's letter to Davenport, she expressed Hayden's desire to complete the Village at Cold Springs subdivision and have it be a positive development for everyone.

"Hayden Homes is working diligently on this application, and we plan to submit a master plan modification concurrent with tentative plat application for all phases as soon as possible. We believe it is in everyone's best interest to get construction started in the first phase in 2016," Pust wrote.