Central Oregon city managers discuss growth challenges

City managers from across Central Oregon came together Monday to discuss how growth is affecting their cities, in both unique and common ways.

The city leaders discussed problems from education in schools to water to transportation at a panel forum hosted by the City Club of Central Oregon.

They all said they are able to learn from one an other and rely on each other for help when it comes to common issues that arise from growth.

Prineville Mayor Betty Roppe, filling in for City Manager Steve Forester, said Prineville is working hard to make sure there is enough water to go around as the city grows.

“We have to do everything we can to use every drop of water,” Roppe said. “If that means we need to pipe our canals, we need to pipe our canals. They aren’t somebody’s water feature for their yard, they are for irrigation.”

Roppe also said Prineville is working hard to keep up with the demands of a growing population, while also keeping the small-town feel many have come to expect.

Other cities in Central Oregon also are working to keep up with the growth.

Madras has seen a bit of a housing boom in recent months, and they hope they will be able to attract people to the area.

Madras city manager Gus Burril said the city has a solid job market for people to utilize, but they are seeing more people decide to commute to the area.

He hopes that by creating cheaper housing options, people will decide to work and live in Madras.

“We think that we are affordable, compared to some of the other regions,” Burril said. “And we think out vicinity, still close to Redmond and Bend and distance into Portland is an advantage. So we think we have a lot to offer folks.”

Burril also mentioned that there are many new businesses coming to Madras to put down roots.

The city is still working on adding a brewery to the area as well, and they are down to the final four applicants in that process.

Bend is, of course, working to keep up with growth as well. It’s tackling the issues from all angles that could potentially be affected, from transportation to education and housing.

City manager Eric King said they are working to improve transportation, especially on the north side of town, and are looking to add more high-density housing, to help create more rental options in the city.

“There is a lot of housing being built, a lot of multi-family housing being built that is now finally starting to come online,” King said. “As that comes online, that takes off some of that pressure. So we are starting to see a bit of that easing on some of those rental prices that have been climbing so steeply in recent years.”

King added that in the long term, they want to make sure the city provides many different styles of housing options, rather than just single-family dwellings.

King said he’s hopeful that with a diverse housing market, things will be able to stay affordable.

All of the city managers said they want to work with the other cities to create a sustainable Central Oregon region.