Horse-boarding business near Juniper Ridge homeless encampments closes down due to ongoing issues

(Update: Adding video, comments from woman whose business closed, Congressman Cliff Bentz)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A woman who owned a farm for horseback boarding just north of Bend, called Moon Dance Ranch & Appaloosas, says she recently was forced to close down her business due to ongoing issues in the area, which neighbors the nearly 400-acre, city-owned Juniper Ridge property with homeless encampments known as Dirt World.

"I've lost like three cats from the dogs out there, and one time it happened at a horse show that I had -- and that was traumatic for the children," Brandy Lee, the former owner of Moon Dance, explained Monday.

For 35 years, Lee owned Moon Dance Ranch. For the past seven years, the business sat adjacent to homeless camps at Juniper Ridge.

She believes that caused a decline in customers, forcing her to close in August.

"Two years ago, some boarders were chased by a dog and car on their horses," Lee recalled. "So, that, to me, was the beginning. Plus, that just manifested into them telling people that it wasn't a safe place. They were afraid."

The encampments are home to nearly 200 people. They sit on nearly 1,500 acres of land owned primarily by the city of Bend, along with some Deschutes County property, along Highway 97.

It's often referred to as "Dirt World" because of the dry conditions and winding dirt roads.

"Also, the owner of the property was getting harassed by the homeless people, and he just didn't want to worry about the boarders being hurt, or something happening to me, since I lived down at the barn," Lee told NewsChannel 21.

She contacted us after our report about the Guadagno family's plans to leave Oregon because of recent trouble with homeless on China Hat Road south of Bend.

Republican Congressman Cliff Bentz, who represents Oregon's 2nd Congressional District, including south Deschutes County, told us he believes the problems at Dirt World go beyond just a lack of housing resources for the homeless.

"You've got the gamut of our most challenged population," he said. "You guys have housing, you have a bunch of it that's available, and these folks simply don't want to move there."

"And if there ever was a signal to what must be done, and again I'll go back to Measure 110, it's because much of that housing says you can't be using drugs when living there."

In August, NewsChannel 21 took a tour of Dirt World with a Deschutes County sheriff's deputy, hired at the time to help deal with fire risks on the land.

In October, Deschutes County paused services, like providing drinking water, restrooms and Dumpsters, to the Juniper Ridge area, after a vendor trying to service the restrooms was allegedly threatened by a man living nearby.

Lee said, "There's a lot more people involved in what the homeless are doing to destroy their lives. And a lot of people need to speak up and call you and tell you their story, just like I am."

As of now, the city of Bend and Deschutes County have no plans to clear the camps.

The County plans to hold off on sweeping the area until there's a managed camp within the Urban Growth Boundary. State rules and court rulings have required communities to have identified places those removed from public land can go to before such clearing processes.

Lee said she doesn't plan to reopen her horse boarding business, instead choosing to work in an antique store with her golden retriever.