River’s Edge homeowners sue Pahlisch Homes over planned homes on part of Bend golf course

'Save River's Edge' signs sprout: 'That's not what we were promised and that's not what we relied on when we bought our homes'

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Several homeowners in the River’s Edge community are suing Pahlisch Homes in an attempt to stop the company from replacing much of the golf course with more homes.

Jeffery Kramer is one of 10 homeowners in the Hidden Ridge neighborhood of River's Edge on Bend's Westside who are suing Pahlisch Homes.

"When you promise people something, and they rely on it, you can't pull the rug out from under them and change the rules of the game,” Kramer said Thursday.

Pahlisch Homes announced earlier this year plans to purchase roughly 50 percent of the existing golf course and build houses.

"Now they want to change the rules. They want to pave over the golf course and pack it with streets and homes,” Kramer said. “And that's not what we were promised, and that's not what we relied on when we bought our homes."

Kramer claimed homeowners have a right to legally enforce that promise through what's known as an "equitable servitude."

"In connection to real property, when you make promises to people, and you know they're going to rely on it, and they do rely on it, you're then obligated to fulfill those promises,” said Kramer, a retired lawyer. 

Jessica Seidel, senior director of marketing with Pahlisch Homes, said they want to listen to the voices of the community, while trying to help combat the community's housing crisis.

"Bend has a lot of needs as a community as a whole, and the more we can kind of take a step back and look at those needs and try to address them in a more macro version, the better,” Seidel said. 

In an effort to hear the voices of the community, Pahlisch hosted an open meeting earlier this summer, and will have another in the fall.

The homeowners filing the lawsuit are being represented by Martin Hansen, a Bend attorney who was involved in the Mountain High case, where homeowners at the Old Back Nine Golf course argued a similar claim, and won.

Kramer is a retired lawyer himself and says he feels very confident they can make their case.

"I've been a lawyer for nearly 40 years. I've never seen a case this strong,” Kramer said. 

NewsChannel 21 asked Seidel whether with the current lawsuits the company has considered altering or stopping the project.

"We're really committed to not only River's Edge but Bend as a whole,” Seidel said. 

Kramer said this is the only lawsuit at the moment, but other neighborhoods in River's Edge could soon follow.

"The fact is that if we win this lawsuit, the entire community benefits,” Kramer said. 

In the interest of transparency, NewsChannel 21 wants to disclose that an employee of KTVZ's parent company, News-Press & Gazette Broadcasting, is a party to the lawsuit. The employee was not contacted by our news department and in no way influenced our reporting.