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Home My WebLink About1-31 notesNotes from South County Community Meeting 1-31-12 Page 1 Below is a general summary of public comments from the South Deschutes County community meeting January 31 at the La Pine Senior Center. This is intended to provide an idea of the topics discussed at the meeting and does not provide an exact transcript. Comments are not attributed, except for comments from County Commissioner Tony DeBone or Planning Commissioners Ed Criss or Jim Powell. County Speakers County Commissioner Tony DeBone – Welcome and introduction County Planner Terri Payne – Background, what is being done as well as why and how and questions for tonight What do you like about South Deschutes County? What South County issues need to be addressed? What would you like South Deschutes County to be like in 20 years? What result(s) would you like to see from the South County Plan process? What information do you need to assist in understanding the issues? Public Input • Enjoys the proximity to rural recreation and access to USFS and BLM lands. • Traffic needs to be addressed; add lanes to US 97 between Sunriver and La Pine; Wickiup Junction (Burgess Road/US 97) needs to be fixed; Ponderosa Pines subdivision now plows internal roads, including Ponderosa Way; County needs to sweep intersection of Burgess/Ponderosa Way; Burgess/Sunrise Court needs sweeping; La Pine needs a branch of college like Bend and Redmond; loves the outdoors • Questions: how many federal/state/local governments and agencies are involved in transportation? How many miles are under local/county/state/federal jurisdiction? • Likes Cascade East Transit (CET) buses, but need another bus that would go to La Pine destinations; wants increased local service. • Bus needs to go Ray’s, Bi-Mart, other La Pine stores; need an intracity loop; wants local transit service that is accessible and affordable; area also needs a mini- hospital, better medical services, otherwise you have to go to St. Charles in Bend. • Questions: what is the percentage of people in South County who are transportation disadvantaged and /or over 65 years old? • Likes the people; need federal health grants and health care services; appreciates staff coming to La Pine • La Pine was boyhood play area; year-round recreation is available which makes this a recreation paradise; people are great, friendly folks; Plan needs to be for 10 years, not 20; safety issue when population increases, prepare for future growth including roadways Notes from South County Community Meeting 1-31-12 Page 2 • Six year resident; likes how people unite in face of adversity such as Local Rule; area needs a community vision of what area stands for; need to become a center between Klamath County and Bend; paved roads are not critical, but the County needs to periodically blade gravel roads; need more law enforcement of speed limits to stop drivers from damaging gravel roads with 60-65+ speeds; County should do minor maintenance on gravel roads; need better health care services, now deficient, expensive, impractical • Other things he meant to mention that he likes about South County include snowmobiling, ATV’s, opportunities to see wildlife; he’s often ridden snowmobiles and ATV’s all the way to OR 58; COIC buses don’t go to Ponderosa Pines subdivision; they only go as far as Day/Burgess; How does COIC determine service areas for the disabled? Tony DeBone – Other things he likes about South County: fishing, black powder rendezvous, quiet starry nights, backyard campfires, burning woodstoves, near-by camping at Paulina Lake, ability of kids to do survival training right outside school, proximity to horse trails. • Likes the people, they’re very diverse; need a community college, an education retraining center; South County has 15% of the County’s population but a limited level of services; roads are falling apart; they need to be maintained; need more law enforcement presence especially since law enforcement from Klamath County has ebbed; need education satellite campuses like Redmond and Prineville have; need health services (short term care) • Likes the accessibility to state and local government representatives; people are friendly and supportive; moved here for the rural atmosphere, knew there would be a lower level of services to maintain rural atmosphere • State legislation for Caldera Springs threatened rural atmosphere; gated communities and super-siting of 925 homes south of Sunriver • Likes the Deschutes County library branches in La Pine and Sunriver; computers, internet access, free conference rooms for public meetings; excellent resource for information. • Enjoys the nature, the peace and quiet; schools are getting full, so even though most folks in room tonight are retirees, plan needs to involve young families as there are lots of them in South County; engage newer folks; La Pine, Sunriver, County all need to recognize how their plans affect each other; County plows stop at the west end of Burgess before Wild River subdivision; plowing seems to end at Ponderosa Way; weeds on County roads are an issue, they should be cut but not sprayed; open burns along Burgess Road were not adequately monitored and lots of trees burned unnecessarily; need better communication between La Pine, Sunriver, and Notes from South County Community Meeting 1-31-12 Page 3 County to achieve better coordination; need better info on what types of vegetation is the best to plant in South County’s unique microclimate so we’ll know what to grow. • We need more information on what they are injecting into the ground near Newberry crater as part of the testing for geothermal power plant; health implications; better communication would let us understand how this might affect us. • Newberry is not a power plant, it’s just exploration; people are very friendly here compared to other areas; likes lots of pine trees; easy to get lost in South County as that’s what happened to group of women riding horses who ended up in his yard. • 3 year resident, previously visited then retired here; people are great even the teens, are respectful and resourceful; likes that recreation opportunities abound; worries about lack of jobs for teens as many jobs once held by teens are now being held by retirees or even young adults; tough to get across US 97 in La Pine; also encountered cyclists at night riding without lights and in dark clothes; need to look at health care and transportation; worried about geothermal; what happens to those people with approved septic system, are they financially liable for groundwater mitigations • Need bus service between La Pine and Bend; need employment • Salem is setting the standards for land use codes or road specifications; we’re different over here and need to push back until they recognize our rural nature Ed Criss – South County has distinctive issues; you need to spread the word to your neighbors to attend these meetings, Planning Commission meetings, and Board of County Commissioner meetings; recap of groundwater issues and rise of “red lots”; protect the riparian area, protect the wetlands to protect the river; direct development to better places; land swap could be the answer for developable lands; on the transportation System Plan (TSP), the Planning Commission heard from Sisters and Redmond, but nothing from South County • Get forest lands back from federal government so County can allow logging and do a better job of fire protection • There is bus service between La Pine and Bend; the problem is getting from Wild River to Wickiup Junction as there is no service; need regular transit service to extend to Wild River; coordinate medical service buses to serve transit • Appreciate that County staff is listening, even if they need to find an answer; better to get direct input from residents rather than funding outside consultants Notes from South County Community Meeting 1-31-12 Page 4 • Lists topics of concern including parks, groundwater, transportation, red lots, nitrates, wildlife report, obsolete subdivisions, infrastructure; need to understand County-owned lands Jim Powell – 30 years ago there was no agreement for what should go into the Comprehensive Plan; now look at how well-organized you’ve become and how you’ve developed consensus and what you’ve accomplished; you’ve established a city and overturned the Local Rule • The plan needs flexibility and there should be a Plan B just in case • Talk to people of all ages and see what the priority is for each age group based on 10-year increments; what’s important to each cohort, what’s important to all