Citizens weigh in on Sisters' growth

With a standing-room-only crowd of over 200 people filling the cafeteria of the new elementary school, the City and their consultants, MIG, presented an overview of the process involved when considering an expansion of the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB), with time for small-group discussions concerning the five alternatives presented and providing feedback to the City.

Based on his experience in numerous other communities, both large and small, MIG consultant Matt Hasty told the assemblage Monday evening, December 9, that the interest shown by citizens of Sisters was exemplary.

Based on inventories conducted by the City of residential and employment lands available to accommodate projected growth over the next 20 years, the City will need new developable land (about 250 acres) not currently within the UGB, which is identical to the city limits. This is despite zone changes made in 2021 intended to increase the efficiency of land to help accompany growth in the City. The population projections come from Portland State University’s Population Research Center which forecasts significant growth over the next 20 years for Sisters and all of Deschutes County.

The entire UGB process is a requirement of the State of Oregon which directs that all cities in Oregon must maintain a 20-year supply of buildable land. In addition, there are criteria that must be met for land to be approved for a UGB expansion. The City is required to create a study area that is between one-half mile and one mile from the current boundary, based on certain criteria.

The State land-use laws adopted in the ’90s were meant to specifically limit urban sprawl and protect farm and forest land throughout the state. Sisters is mostly surrounded by land zoned for forest or farm use, much of which is part of Deschutes National Forest. Land not zoned for farm/forest uses is a higher priority when considering a UGB expansion and is classified as Priority One.

The City is required to first look at Priority One lands when planning a UGB expansion. If there isn’t enough developable land there to meet the needs of the City, the analysis can be expanded to include lower priority lands.

The Priority One area extends one mile north and east of the area around Sisters Eagle Airport and the North Sisters Business Park. Indian Ford Creek and Whychus Creek run through the area. It contains vacant land as well as rural residential subdivisions with lot sizes from two to 20 acres, many with CC&Rs (conditions, covenants and restrictions).

At the December 9 meeting, attendees were presented with five alternatives for possible UGB expansion lands. Among the five alternatives, they encompass all Priority One land in the study area. Each alternative has sufficient land to meet the City’s identified need for new housing, jobs, parks, and other public facilities.

Attendees broke into small discussion groups to consider the five alternatives, keeping in mind four different factors that the City can use to make decisions about where to expand.

• Factor 1: efficient accommodation of identified land needs.

• Factor 2: orderly and economic provision of public facilities and services.

• Factor 3: environment, energy, economics, and social consequences.

• Factor 4: compatibility with nearby agricultural and forest activities.

They discussed which of the criteria were most important, the pros and cons of each alternative, and what the new neighborhoods should look like.

At the conclusion of the table discussions, each group was asked to identify what they thought were the two most important considerations when evaluating the five alternatives — for example, affordability and protecting natural resources. Those were all collected and will be utilized by the City in their process.

In the next phase of the UGB process, the City will create a “preferred alternative,” which may be a hybrid of more than one of the five alternatives.

The City website ( http://www.ci.sisters.or.us ) provides maps of the five alternatives as well as all the information from the Open House and space to add thoughts and comments. You can also find more information about the project, next steps in the process, and sign up for automatic email updates on the City website. The next UGB Steering Committee meeting will take place in late January 2025 when the refined UGB Alternatives and Evaluation Report will be presented.

The UGB process is lengthy, at least several years from start to finish. The City is only part way through the process. Establishing a new UGB doesn’t mean any development begins right away. Property owners within the new UGB must request annexation into the City before development can begin. Some owners may request annexation and others may not.

UGB Online Open House

If you couldn’t make it to the community open house on the Urban Growth Boundary Amendment on December 9, 2024, there’s still plenty of time to have your voice heard. You can review the same information presented at the in-person open house and provide your feedback in the online open house, which is now available at http://www.ci.sisters.or.us through early January 2025. Please click the red banner on the city home page for access to the online open house.

Additional project information, including next steps in the process, can also be found on the UGB Amendment page of the City website (click UGB Amendment icon at the bottom of the homepage).

You can also sign up for automatic email updates on the process, so you don’t miss any important meetings and have access to the latest work products.

The next steps in the process will be for the city to summarize the feedback received from the in-person and online open house. An evaluation report will be finalized which scores each of the UGB Alternatives based on the required State review criteria.

The information, along with refinements to the UGB Alternatives, will be shared with the public at the next UGB Steering Committee meeting in late January. Planning Commission and City Council workshops on the subject will occur in February. The goal is to have a Preferred UGB Alternative by the spring of 2025, which will be subject to formal approval through a land-use process with adoption anticipated to be Fall of 2025.

For more information contact Scott Woodford, community development director, at 541-323-5211 or email [email protected].