City looking ahead to new year

For each fiscal year, July 1 to June 30, the City Council, with input from staff, adopts a set of goals to direct the work at City Hall for the coming year.

The goals for 2022/23 cover seven specific areas including Livability and Growth, Wildfire Mitigation and Community Resiliency, Economic Development, Essential Infrastructure, Good Governance, Environmental Sustainability, and Urban Renewal Agency Goals. At halfway through the year, at least 16 of 23 specific projects are either completed or underway.

Livability and Growth strategies address evaluating the buildable land inventory and potential expansion of the Urban Growth Boundary, as well as implementing top- priority projects from the 2020 Transportation Safety Audit to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety. The City actively participated in the creation of the Joint Office of Homelessness with Deschutes County and is currently working with a development partner for a future multifamily workforce housing rental project.

Progress has been made in each of the seven goal areas, which provide the road map from City Council to City staff for the year’s focus areas.

Some of the ongoing and upcoming projects for the second half of the 2022/23 fiscal year include starting development of the East Portal transportation hub. Following the community open house, where citizens were able to provide feedback on three concept drawings, work is now underway on a final concept plan for adoption by the Council.

At the November 30 Council meeting, councilors will be presented with a consent agenda item to accept a right-of-way deed of dedication with the Sisters School District for the Highway 20/Locust roundabout.

In January 2023, the city manager position will be advertised by Jensen Strategies with a new city manager hopefully in place in March.

Work will continue through the school year on the Sisters Sustainable City Year Program through the University of Oregon. Upper-level students from a variety of disciplines are currently working with the Sisters School District on possible uses of the District administration building and the elementary school when the new one is completed. They will also be working with the City on several projects.

Ongoing work is being done on the Water and Wastewater Management Plan Update, the Adams Avenue Streetscape project, possible changes to the short-term rental program, updating the Dark Skies ordinance and enforcing it, and plans for the new city park in the Sisters Woodlands development at the northeast corner of West Barclay Drive and Highway 20.

The Community Development Department is continuing its review of the Sunset Meadows Master Plan from Woodhill Homes. Several public hearings on the project prompted citizen turnouts of 60-plus people, almost all of whom were opposed to the proposal as presented.

Check the City of Sisters website for more information – www.ci.sisters.or.us.