Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2-1 notesNotes from South County Community Meeting 2-1-12 Page 1 Below is a general summary of public comments from the South Deschutes County community meeting February 1 at the Sunriver Library. 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 Commissioner Ed Criss. 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 • How will decisions be made? Will the public be involved in decisions or just reacting to what’s presented? • What is our framework to go on? • Staff discussed the process of informal public involvement allows for input into the ideas being discussed and will be followed by formal public involvement when a change is proposed to the current section of the Comprehensive Plan called Regional Problem Solving for south Deschutes County Commissioner DeBone provided some background on his family’s history in South County and reiterated the questions for tonight • Sunriver resident loves the solitude and quiet, but still being close to services; wants, young families to be able to enjoy the same things she does; concerned over lack of services needed by young families, such as high speed internet Commissioner Criss discussed the need and process for large lot industrial land to create family wage jobs; also discussed the Comprehensive Plan Action Plan • Likes library system and resources; would like there to be a South County parks and recreation district, rather than just the existing one for La Pine; would like more parks on the river in South County • Would like an organization to represent South County, not just La Pine or just Sunriver, to provide a South County voice Notes from South County Community Meeting 2-1-12 Page 2 • Likes the solitude, but also wants to be part of a community; likes wider roads to ride a bike to town; likes the closeness to the mountain; downside is that as the children grew up they left, too isolated for them; need too attract younger families • There is a perception of a divide between La Pine and Sunriver; the perception that Sunriver doesn’t care is wrong; relationships are needed to build a South County community • South County is not a concept people relate to, maybe use South of Lava Butte Commissioner Criss recognizes the La Pine Citizens Action Group as well as the Upper Deschutes River Coalition and the Sunriver Homeowners Association as active community groups; commonality between Sunriver and La Pine; communication is important in overcoming perceptions; land swap could provide park lands all along the river; could use small destination resorts (no residences, just visitor lodging) • Much of the land in Deschutes County is federal; loves how close we are to Mount Bachelor • Loves canoeing on the river and kayaking on the lakes • Love amenities as well; look to urban areas for growth; young families are expecting amenities like good water and transportation • Love my home but as people mature, needs change; as we age need to move closer to urban areas • Is there a way to not just to take input, but to put people into planning process itself Staff explained that plans for future meetings are intended to do that • Request to refocus the meeting away from process • Likes the friendly people of South County • Who represented South County in the past? Staff noted generally there has been a specific South County Planning Commissioner; discussed past/ongoing projects like Project Wildfire • To bring people to the area need a website that connects all the entities in the area, one place to get information about amenities, recreation, businesses • One place, all in this together, need one source of information Notes from South County Community Meeting 2-1-12 Page 3 • Moved from Chicago, children moved away as soon as possible; wants coordination on hospitality; people want to visit and know what’s going on • Major trend in home businesses, need strong internet infrastructure; home businesses provide living wage jobs; allow a high quality of life • Home businesses are good, but there is still a need for community • Currently coordinating bringing high speed broadband to the area; example of Chattanooga Tennessee, high speed internet brought 3,200 new jobs paying average of $58,000/year; wants to bring the internet to 10,000 homes • As a realtor, one of the top 3 question raised is the availability of internet access, even for second homes; there is an emphasis on selling the home office on vacation • Discussion – people like South of Lava Butte name for the area • Likes the improvements on Century Drive • Hopes the plan considers regional transportation needs; north south route up the west side of the basin • FS road 41, need to involve BLM and Forest Service in this process • Need alternatives to Harper Bridge Boat Ramp, for access and public safety • If better access then floating the river would be a larger part of tourism • The resort has active and engaged residents and so does the whole area, they need each other • Public transit not in mind when existing development patterns initiated, not easy due to dispersed lots • Work with ODOT, all roads lead to Hwy 97, that is the community connector