I am interested in all Bend neighborhoods sharing in the location of these facilities.
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Citizen Comment submitted to Deschutes County Administration on 03/05/24 Good Afternoon Commissioners & Citizen Input,
The Larkspur Neighborhood on the east side of Bend has tremendous potential to provide much needed lower & middle income housing for the entire city. A close-in subsection of Larkspur bounded by the Parkway on the west, Reed Market on the south, and the railroad tracks to the east and north has approximately 600 residential addresses. This neighborhood is filled with owner-occupants and long-term renters and sits just 1 mile due east of the Old Mill District. With the Wilson Ave street and bike/walk/roll improvements nearing completion, just this one small section of Larkspur could remain a readily accessible source of lower priced housing for many years to come. But, for that to happen, this vision needs to be supported by City of Bend and Deschutes County Governments. There is tremendous potential here to help sustain an affordable neighborhood on the south end of the Bend Central District. There are parks, a grocery store, drug store, coffee shop, new pizza restaurant, motels, and other restaurants and small businesses. The homes and rental properties are modest. This neighborhood is also already home to a tiny home transitional facility and food pantry, a permanent supportive housing facility (under construction), the Bend Trailer Park, and new low-income rental housing at the Old Mill Inn and Suites. Two large shelters for the houseless are in an area adjacent to this neighborhood, just north of the railroad tracks. You've heard me speak at BOCC meetings recently about the proposed county shelter for parolees at 640 SE Wilson Ave. I thank you for the opportunity to provide that input. Among the reasons me and many other neighbors are opposed to this facility are 1) we see how much unrealized potential our neighborhood has, 2) we see how much our neighborhood is already doing to provide shelter and transitional housing to the poor, and 3) we see how one more shelter like this one on Wilson Ave. could be the tipping point between a safe, healthy, and much-needed affordable neighborhood vs. a section of town that becomes undesirable to most owner-occupants and long-term renters. Will you please help us realize the full potential of our neighborhood? Will you please reconsider the location for the parolee shelter at 640 SE Wilson Ave? Thank you, Comment received 02/03/2024I'm a nearby resident, in the Old Farm District.
I applaud your effort to bring a constructive, logical focus to this issue. A few thoughts that come to mind include (1) Get your movement in front of more citizens, for more activism. (2) Consider proposing no more shelters in the city limits. Direct funds into establishment of a single site outside of town that includes police presence, spaces for car campers/RV's, tiny homes and 1-person cottages. Extend public transit to the site. Limited time stay. No camping in city limits. Safety first. Just a message of support for pointing out the inequities of homeless parking, camp and shelter placement and felon re-entry housing in Bend...
If shelters are to be, then they need to be sited fairly. If these are our community solution, then their verifiable impact on kids’ safety, neighborhood livability and home equity should be experienced by the entire community, by all areas of Bend.... I believe it is long past time to investigate the pros and cons of a City Council constituted of geographical wards, perhaps four wards with two at-large members, as was recommended to the BCC by its own community panel a few years ago. Their recommendations brought Bend an elected mayor. Wards should now be vetted as a path to equal representation of constituents. "I wanted to see if you have considered obtaining legal counsel or contacting the ACLU of Oregon about the way the city is putting all low income housing - or most of it - in Larkspur? As you probably know, Larkspur is home to the highest number of people of color and lowest income in Bend. In fact, the tract of apartments along 15th St from Wilson to Bear Creek, has been this way for many years."
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