Bend online survey asks: How, where should city grow?

The city of Bend is asking for the public’s help help in planning the future of the city, as it works to draw new city limits that it hopes will meet with state approval.

You can tell the city what you think about different Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) expansion scenarios currently under consideration through an interactive online survey tool found athttps://bendugb.metroquest.com.

The city’s UGB public engagement process has included a similar online survey in the past, and it was a popular method for input from those who wanted to provide feedback but could not come to a meeting.

This survey will give you the opportunity to comment on the relative importance of different evaluation criteria, identify a preferred UGB scenario, and comment on possible approaches for managing future growth in Bend.

The survey should only take 10 or 15 minutes to complete. It provides very brief descriptions of the UGB scenarios. You can find more information about them in the reports posted atwww.bendoregon.gov/bendugb.

More information about the alternative UGB expansion scenarios will be discussed at an upcoming meeting from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. onThursday, Oct. 1, at the Bend Parks & Recreation District, Riverbend Community Room, 799 SW Columbia Street, Bend. Attendees can also be shown the online survey tool at that meeting.

The city’s UGB expansion project is charting a path for Bend’s future growth. The UGB is a line on the city’s General Plan map that identifies Bend’s urban land. The state previously rejected an earlier proposed UGB expansion, saying it included too much land and that the city should put more focus in “infill” development of vacant parcels within the existing city.

As state land-use laws require, this land represents an estimated 20-year supply of land for employment, housing and other urban uses. The community has an opportunity to develop a plan for future growth that reflects the community’s values and meets state planning requirements.